Could've Been, Might've Been
by Kikushi
Summary: Tenten is ready for marriage and Tsunade takes this as a chance to strengthen their alliance with the Sand Village. All Tenten has to do is fall in love with the Kazakage, Gaara, and marry him! Easier said than done; Neji won't allow it. NejiTenGaara.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** Again, I do not own Naruto, _damn it_. These stupid disclaimers make me feel so worthless. (sob)

**A/N:** I know I put my other story on hold, but trust me— I've been working on it too! This idea just suddenly came to me and I couldn't wait to put it down! I mean, come on. NejiTen is so great, but mixed in with Gaara? It's unstoppable.

And yes, I am aware that it starts out beautifully (I'm so modest, ha) and that it gradually starts to become crappier and crappier.

Eh, that's just how I write. Hahaha.

Oh well, I hope you guys like it.

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**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

It could have been the way that her strapless, sleeveless silver dress— a fitted bodice of charmeuse and chiffon fabrics so magnificent, flaring out at the knees with flowing white vintage lace— clung tightly to her upper body like a second skin.

It could have been the way that her hair, usually in a tight-knotted odango atop her head, cascaded in large waves— like golden-brown rays of light— over her shoulder and down her back, just barely hanging above her slender waist.

It could have been the way that she was walking towards him, placing each slender foot in front of the other as she fluttered with beautiful goddess grace, her matching silver stilettos clacking in place as they made impact with the polished marble floors.

Or it might have been her expression. Her face, lovingly pale and glowing, complimented her smoldering chocolate-brown eyes. Her lips were full and slightly painted with pink gloss. Her cheeks were flushed a pretty crimson that made his mouth water... and she was _scowling_. Probably beyond _irritated_.

Of course. Why else on earth would he be so nervous? It is _Tenten_ after all. He would admit that she looked pretty (maybe even slightly more than that), but he knew that the main reason he was so nervous tonight was because of the wrath of Tenten... Or so that's what he kept telling himself. Never mind the fact that the nervousness and the unexplainable heat that coursed through him only appeared upon Tenten's entrance. Forget that.

He gulped as she made her way nearer and nearer. '_She is so devastatingly beautiful._'

He scoffed. '_I meant devastatingly beautifully __**angry**__._'

Right.

He counted the steps she took until she reached him. '_Ten, twelve, fourteen…_'

They stood face to face for a moment, both hesitating, unsure of what to say to each other. They were both dressed up and it was damn awkward… But forget that.

Why the hell were they dressed up in the first place?

"Neji Hyuuga, I _absolutely demand_ to know what is going on here."

She was precious. He towered over her height easily, and as he looked down at her, he noticed for the first time how Tenten had, uh, grown these past few years. She was certainly well _endowed_.

Neji let out a low growl, mentally chastising himself. '_I was talking about her diamond necklace, of course._'

Of course.

He let his eyes travel to her silver necklace. A diamond key hung from it, the tip of the key slightly hidden behind her dress, comfortably settled in the valley of her breasts. That stupid key.

Neji growled again. What in the world was the matter with him?

"Neji, stop growling at me like a puppy and answer me!"

"Hn," he replied, slightly relieved that she did not notice his wandering eyes.

"_Don't you 'Hn' me_!"

He sighed. "Tenten, I do not know what this is about anymore than you do."

He watched as she huffed dejectedly and fell silent by his side. Minutes passed and ticked away before they finally heard a voice from the other side of the door call them. The Hokage.

They had both received a summoning the day before. Surprisingly, Lee had not been called to join them. This was to be a solo-mission, the Hokage had said. Imagine their surprise when they met each other, exchanging the news of their mission (the very same one!) just hours earlier. Had the Hokage lied to them?

"Tenten, Neji, you may come in now."

The two entered the dimly lit office of the Hokage. There was a tense air between them as they approached the Lady Tsunade's desk. One look at both of the teenagers' faces immediately indicated what was going on between them. The Hokage sighed.

"All right. I know that I said before that this was to be a solo-mission," Tsunade said seriously, "and it still is."

Two confused faces blinked back at her, but nevertheless stayed silent.

"Tenten. This is _your_ solo-mission."

The girl visibly relaxed, but her face was still confused. "But then why is—?"

"Neji Hyuuga. You'll be her escort."

Neji tensed. "Just her… escort?"

"That's right."

"I'm afraid I don't understand," he prompted lightly. "Should I stand back and do nothing?"

"Well," the Hokage mused, "this is not the job for you, I'm afraid."

The prodigy twitched slightly in anger. "Please explain."

"It's a Kunoichi mission."

They both tensed. Neji almost dropped his jaw in shock. HIS Tenten? How could the Hokage have made such an unreasonable choice? Not that he thought Tenten was incapable of seduction, of course. He turned his head slowly to look at her. Her face was calm, almost stoic, but her hand at her side, Neji observed, was slightly trembling. '_Please refuse_,' he mentally pleaded with her, '_Please._'

"I understand," she whispered.

The Hokage nodded at her. "Then it's settled. This mission will be a fast one. It will be at the festival tonight, right here in the village."

"Wait," Neji interrupted hastily, "Why Tenten? What about someone else?"

Tenten whirled around to face him, her expression surprised and offended. "You think I can't handle this by myself?!"

He ignored her and stared deadpanned at the Hokage.

She sighed and shrugged. "You know very well that Naruto, Sakura, and Sai are on a mission right now. Ino is still in the hospital, and unless you want me to send your cousin to do this job…" she trailed off.

Neji narrowed his eyes. Okay, so maybe it wasn't such an unreasonable choice. But still, the Hokage didn't have to drag Hinata in the conversation.

"Actually, you weren't even planned to come in the first place, Hyuuga."

Neji opened his mouth to protest—

"But," Tsunade interjected quickly, "I thought you might feel better about coming."

"But you better not interrupt!" Tenten added.

Neji looked at both women and sighed. "But of course," he replied to them both.

Tenten gave him a half-smile and turned back to the Hokage. "So, who exactly am I seducing again?" she inquired.

Tsunade looked away pointedly from Neji. "Well, about that…" she started, her eyes becoming shifty, "See, this isn't exactly a... No. What I mean is, this mission is…"

Was she _stalling_?

"What?" an impatient prodigy demanded.

"As you both know, our alliance with the Sand Village has finally been settled since Gaara came to rule," Tsunade began, folding her hands on her desk. "However, this alliance is limited and it does not extend to military back-up."

The Hokage stood, sighing and rubbing her temple. "This is something that our village needs most… and it is something the Village of the Sand is willing to grant."

"What!?" Tenten and Neji exclaimed in unison.

Tenten placed her hands on her hips, shaking her head."Wait! But there must be some condition! Some sort of catch or something!"

"Precisely."

Neji and Tenten waited. There seemed to be a long silence before Tsunade spoke again.

"Tenten, your mission is to seduce the Fifth Kazekage at the festival tonight."

"WHAT?!" The two teens exclaimed in perfect harmony once more.

"O-okay… but w-why?" Tenten asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"That's right," Neji said, "You never did tell us the condition."

"Well…" Tsunade began heavily, turning to face the window, "Tenten is of age, I suppose."

"What?" Tenten demanded, tired of the stalling. '_Can't she just spill it out?!_'

There was another heavy sigh. "The condition is… marriage."

"WHAAAAAAAAAT?!" Tenten and Neji looked at each other in shock.

Tsunade cringed and cradled her head. '_Noisy brats_,' she thought, irritated. "That's right," she continued, "As the Kazekage, he is searching for a suitable wife… A kunoichi."

Tsunade turned around to face Tenten. "So now that this is out, you can see that this isn't just a regular Kunoichi mission," she paused, unsure if either Neji or Tenten could even hear her. They were still frozen and open-mouthed. "I'm, uh, not selling you out, Tenten, but you're a strong woman and a family is all you've ever wanted, right?"

There was a long, long silence.

Eventually, Tenten's shocked expression slowly withered away, turning into confused concern.

"Neji? Is your nose… _bleeding_?"

.

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**A/N:** Unfortunately, this is the end of this chapter. I'm not sure when I'll have the time to write the next one… Although I do check my email a lot. Reviews might help. (:D)

I hope it was a good beginning!

Oh, and another thing, I already have the entire story plotted out. However, ideas and suggestions are always welcome! Who knows? I just might like your idea so much that I could make room for it in the story.

Okay! _Back to work..._


	2. The Great Awakening

**Disclaimer:** NO. LEAVE ME ALONE.

**A/N:** Ahaha, remember last chapter when I said I didn't know when the next update would be? Well, apparently, today!

I also wrote the first segment of the story in Tenten's point of view, just for fun.

Oh, and before I forget, characters **MIGHT** be slighly OOC. But more or less, I tried. Really.

Also, I **_have_** proof-read this, but just to be sure, if anyone finds a mistake, please tell me!

On with the story!

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**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

**...**

**Tenten's POV:**

**...**

For some reason, the almighty Hyuuga Neji, aka the prodigy, has been man-PMS-ing since his major nosebleed. I mean, come on, it's nothing to be embarrassed about! Everyone has a nosebleed every now and then. Not Neji, though. It must have been his first time or something. Why else would he be acting like such a sourpuss?

Anyway, I've been thinking about this whole marriage thing… and I think I'm pretty ready for it. I mean, really! The entire freakin' village has known about my not-so-secret love for the Hyuuga for years. I've done everything in the book, and also things_ not_ in the book, but the guy's seriously not in to me at all. I mean, what else can a girl do? I've cried myself to sleep so many times. It's about time to change things around here. I'm pretty sure this marriage thing could work. But to Gaara? It's like a joke. I mean, sure, it would take me a while to learn how to love the guy, but I'm pretty sure it could happen. Even though said guy can kill me anytime he wants.

Oh my God. Sudden thought.

What if I cooked him something he didn't like? He'd kill me.

What if he doesn't like me in bed? He'd laugh, and then kill me.

Or worse yet- what if I told him a bad joke? He _wouldn't_ laugh, and then kill me.

Okay. I know I'm making this sound all light, as if it's nothing, but in reality, I think I'd be bawling my eyes out if I really did have to marry Gaara. I mean, really. All these years, and no Neji? What wasted effort! Anyway, Tsunade rephrased my mission and said that all I really had to do was try and talk to him, get to know him, and see if I like him. Then it'd be _my_ choice whether or not I want to marry the guy. If I hadn't already met Neji, I think I'd actually be kind of giddy right now.

I mean, Gaara _is_ quite a looker. Not to mention strong. _Really_ strong. Stronger than Neji, even. I'm pretty sure he has his own sting of fangirls lurking around in the shadows somewhere.

Or maybe he already killed them all.

…Wow. I never realized how hot Gaara could be.

**...**

**End Pov.**

**...**

They were walking down the street together, towards the festival. There were bright red lanterns hanging on each post, lighting the roads. Many people had already gone to gather near the main street, where the parade was soon-to-be-held.

They weren't talking, but walking in silence. Occasionally, their arms would brush against one another, and each time, the prodigy would flinch back like it had burned him. The girl, however, barely noticed at all.

Awkwardly, Neji stole a careful side glance at his aloof companion and saw her lost deeply in her thoughts. He frowned, a crease forming on his forehead. '_Tenten wouldn't want to marry_,' he thought, not fully convinced. '_Tenten wouldn't…_'

He looked her over once again. She was too involved with her thoughts and Neji took this to his advantage to gawk at her once more. She was so beautiful. He just had to admit it now, seeing her dramatically lighted under the street lights. Of course, every single person had stared at her as she walked by them, but he had stopped their staring with one glare. She was just too beautiful. '_It should be illegal for her to put her hair down_,' he sulked. The unexplainable heat from a couple of hours earlier coursed through him again. Was this an emotion derived from simply looking at Tenten?

Neji had always valued her. She was strong. He liked that about her. She had self-confidence in herself which he so admired, but she was humble at the same time. She was pure and innocent. She was kind, but not a pushover. She was generous, though she, an orphan, had almost nothing for herself. He had always cherished her; these values that made her Tenten.

His Tenten, getting married? HELL NO. It wasn't so much as love as it was, uh, parental protectiveness. Neji nodded. '_That's right. It's not love. It's protectiveness for my dear teammate._'

"Oh! There he is!"

The beautiful melody of her voice snapped him from his musings. Neji turned to look at his companion once more, only to see that she was already running ahead. He couldn't stop himself from staring at her chest.

He had never been as hormonal as, say, Kiba or Ino who would flirt with almost anyone they happened to favor upon sight. However, due to contrary belief, he _did_ have hormones. He recalled the times when he would show up for sparring a couple of minutes late due to a… complicated dream. He could never look at Tenten in the eye. It wasn't difficult to admit that he _enjoyed_ his nighttime fantasies with Tenten, but it wasn't love. It was _puberty_. (Only he could come up with such an excuse.)

'_Surely,_' Neji thought, still wrapped up in his denial, '_everyone has those dreams about someone. With me, it just so happens to be Tenten because she is the closest female to me_.'

He never lingered on the subject longer than necessary and usually forgot about them for days at a time before they visited him again at some random night. Thanks to their daily sparring, Neji knew the contours of Tenten's body to a very detailed extent. But in his dreams, whenever he would look at her from underneath him, she always had her hair in their daily hairstyle. Now that he had finally seen her with her hair down, he was sure that his erotic dreams would improve. Neji almost blushed. _Almost_.

'_What the hell am I thinking about?!_' he yelled at himself, trying to shake off the images.

He scanned the crowd for his long-lost teammate, wondering how long he had stood there alone, like a fool. It didn't take him long to finally spot her with her beautiful silver dress and all. She stood in a circle of space amongst the great crowds of people, who seemed to back off from her godly presence. She was laughing and she seemed like she was having a great time, and for a moment, Neji felt inwardly giddy.

That is, of course, until he noticed that she was not alone in her circle of space.

Gaara.

Neji felt himself freeze and his insides grow cold. He wanted to strangle him. The man was by himself, cool and mighty, and he was unsmiling. Neji watched with narrowed eyes as the Kazekage opened his mouth to speak. Neji couldn't read his lips, but when he had finished his sentence, he wore a small smirk on his face. Neji wanted to wipe it off his face with a few not-so-Gentle Fists.

Tenten swiveled her head in his direction, with surprise, Neji noted, and laughed again. She gave him a quick smile, _dismissing_ him (!?) with a wave of her hand before turning back to speak to Gaara again.

Angrily (also jealous and hurt, though he'd never admit), Neji started to walk towards them, but caught himself just in time. He had promised that he would not interfere.

'_All Tenten has to do is talk to him for tonight, and then it's all over_,' he reminded himself, trying to calm down. He didn't even know why he cared in the first place. '_I do not love her_.'

He watched as they started to walk away together, the crowd magically parting for them as they made their way through. It wasn't as easy for Neji to follow behind. He had to wait a while first just to make sure that the two wouldn't sense his presence. He was sure to receive hell from Tenten should she realize his stalking.

For a while, he was sure of the direction they had taken and headed towards it. However, when he did not see them, even after a crazed searching frenzy, Neji knew that he had been outsmarted. Evidently, Tenten must have mentioned to Gaara how he would be lurking and he must have found some way to escape.

Neji sighed, glaring at yet another girl who tried to make a move on him. She scurried away quickly. More than hour and a half had gone by since the two had disappeared from his sight. The festival was almost coming to an end. He was paranoid with worry. '_What could they be doing?!_' he pondered in frustration, '_What if he's…? I'll kill him. I swear by my name that I'll kill him!_'

"It was… fun."

Neji turned around rapidly. He knew who that voice belonged to. There must have been a thousand voices speaking, and he was kind of surprised with himself for immediately picking up her soft voice. Sure enough, after a quick scan, he spotted Tenten and Gaara together on the other side of the same street, almost hidden with all the people walking in between. Tenten had her back turned to him.

Neji almost sighed in relief. '_They're saying goodbye. It's about time_.'

Gaara nodded. "Until next time."

Then, with an unfathomable expression, he placed his hands on her shoulders and leaned in towards her face, but not before looking over her head to smirk at Neji, who was horrorstruck. He kissed her on the cheek, maintaining eye contact with the Hyuuga.

'_He knew I was here the entire time!_' the prodigy thought with rage.

Gaara straightened up, smirked one last time (both at Tenten and Neji) and disappeared with the wind. Tenten turned around slowly, dazed.

Neji was still frozen on the spot, but his eyes were on Tenten as she gently lifted a hand to her cheek. Her face was flushed in exhilaration and her eyes were glazed over as she started to walk home, as if in a trance. She was quickly lost in the crowd.

Neji found that he still could not move to follow her.

It wasn't rage or the bloodlust that stuck him to the spot. It wasn't the sudden feeling of possessiveness he felt towards her, nor was it any kind of pain or jealousy.

It was realization.

'_I don't want to lose her_,' Neji thought, his eyes widening as he finally understood.

"I love Tenten."

.

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**A/N:** Well? Well?

Haha. Okay, I'm very serious about the _'I'm not sure when the next update will be'_ thing. I'm a procrastinator, you see.

Enjoy this now. Review if you want, spam my inbox (ahaha, just kidding, I think of them as lovely, lovely reminders :D), criticize, whatever. But know I might not spew up another chapter anytime soon. I'm very busy... sorry!

Also, I know I didn't really get into whatever Tenten and Gaara were doing. (What WERE they doing?!) But don't worry, I'll be clear with more _Tenten POV_ in the next chapter.

Well anyway, thank you for reading! I hope you liked it!


	3. Her Revelation

**Disclaimer:** NO. How many more times must I confess this?!

**A/N:** Okay, so basically, this is chapter two, in **Tenten's point of view**!

Characters, specifically Gaara may be **OOC**.

...But hey, I tried.

Also, I kind of switch tenses a lot ...I need a beta reader! I've tried scanning over the entire thing to be sure, but I know that I've missed a lot!

I think it's all right, though.

Anyway, onwards.

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**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

**(Tenten's POV)**

I'm pretty sure he has his own sting of fangirls lurking around in the shadows somewhere.

Or maybe he already killed them all.

…Wow. I never realized how hot Gaara could be.

So pretty much, Neji and I are walking down the streets to the festival. My hands are sort of clammy and I'm stumbling a little. There was a mild breeze which, thank goodness, prevented sweat from pouring down my face. It was a slightly humid night, but it was cool enough. However, for some reason I can't even begin to fathom, I had very difficult time breathing. In short, I was pretty much a nervous wreck.

Okay, that sounded really pathetic. Wow. Jeez! Get a hold of yourself Tenten! Since when have I ever, EVER, chickened out because of some guy? Pffft.

I hear music. I'm really just trying to distract myself with these random thoughts, you know? I'm just trying to calm myself down. That's right… I mean, I'm not the kind of girl who's ever been on a date before.

…Whoa! Not that this is a date or anything! It's just, ah…

Oh! The parade already started… That means Gaara should be around here somewhere… I wonder if I look okay… Should I ask Neji?

I turned to glance at Neji, my mouth half-opened to ask him when a lone figure caught my eye. There he was- and Oh. My. Goodness. I mean, he wasn't a Neji Hyuuga, but WOW. I don't fall for anyone that easily, but you have to admit- he looked _kind of_ sexy leaning against the lamppost like that, watching me in his all-black get-up... Hold on, did I just say _kind of_?? I meant, REALLY. He looked REALLY sexy.

I struggled for words, forgetting the question that I was supposed to ask.

"Oh! There he is!" I yelled, only because Neji looked like he was in Lala Land, the way he was spacing out and everything. I ran over to Gaara (um, also POSSIBLY future husband!) and watched as he watched me run over to him... At least he's not pretending to NOT stare at my chest.

"Gaara! Long time no see!" I greeted nervously. I winced. Nice one, Tenten! Way to NOT sound like a ditz. I mean, would he even remember me?

No response.

I mean, I wasn't asking for one or anything, but couldn't he at least DO something other than stare at me? The way he's looking makes it seem like he's some kind of creeper or something—

"Hn."

I almost turned around to check if Neji was behind me when I realized that GAARA had said that. Wow. How un-original of him. I know Neji didn't buy the word or anything, but that was so…

Yeah. Anyway, he answers in slow-mo.

"Are you enjoying the festival so far?" I asked, flashing him my infamous Tenten grin.

He lifted a shoulder slightly in a lazy half-shrug.

Wow! Not only does he kill people! He's also a conversation-killer!!

I opened my mouth again to ask another question when he beat me to it.

"You're the one the Hokage sent…" he mumbled quietly.

Ouch. Was that supposed to mean something? Wait! On the other hand, I think that means that he does recognize me! Score for Tenten!

"Yeah, what's it to ya?" I asked, almost huffily and semi-pretending to be offended. I think it worked.

There was a pause. Jeez! Can't he talk faster?

"I thought you were already engaged," he said, casually smirking and inclining his head a little to where I knew Neji stood some forty feet away. My eyes bulged.

"Wha- engaged to—!!" I swiveled around to look at Neji, shocked at the assumption.

"Oh no! That's not it at all! We're not engaged!" I laughed nervously, waving my hand in a sweeping manner. I even blushed, damn it. What a nice thought! If only! I fought hard to not roll my eyes.

In your dreams, Tenten. In your dreams.

"I see."

Silence.

_Ooo-kaay. Awkward._

…Conversation-killer.

"Well," I coughed, trying to hide my growing agitation with him, "let's go!"

…"Where?"

I blinked. "Anywhere!" …as long as we don't have to stand here anymore, damn it!

I started to walk off in some direction, noting with satisfaction that he was following me. I mean, sure, Gaara was following me, but I was talking about Neji. Uh-huh. I must've had a smug smile on my face. Yup, I was _feelin' good_… not for long! Anyway, I must have (MUST HAVE) done something wrong… some sort of murder or crucial sin because the most awkwardest of awkward conversations happened immediately after.

"He's following us."

"He's not my boyfriend!" (Me and my damn thoughts…)

"...I didn't say he was."

"Oh. Well, then, uh, just ignore him!"

"I don't like it."

"Stop looking at him!"

"…"

"Stop it!"

"I'm NOT looking at him."

"Oh. Uh, okay. Sorry."

Silence.

"I said I'm sorry!"

"…"

"Hey! Don't be mad!" I put on my cute Tenten pout and glared at his back. Hey…

"…You know- you kind of walk like him…"

"…?"

"Yeah! A kind of lazy swag, like you're drunk or something..."

Evil glare of doom.

"W-wait! A sexy kind of swag! One that makes your ass look good!"

"……………………"

"N-Not that I was looking, honestly!! I didn't mean it like that!! Wait- not that I'm saying your ass doesn't look good- I mean, I'm pretty sure it does! Uh, not that I was… Uh…"

"Stop talking about my ass."

"Yes! Of course! Let's talk about someone else's!"

"….What?"

Sudden realization. Furious blush. HEAVY MENTAL ANGUISH.

"I meant to say, let's talk about something else!"

"Hn."

Oh GREAT, Tenten! Now he thinks that you're some kind of creep!

"I'm serious! It was an innocent slip of the tongue!"

He gave me an incredulous look as if to say, _innocent_?

Silence.

"I wouldn't mind talking about yours."

…

WHAT?!

My eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

Did he just make a joke?!!

I looked up at Gaara, who was wearing an unbearably smug smirk, as if he was waiting for me to say something about it. What was I _supposed_ to say?!

"Uh… uh… but there's nothing to say about my ass," I stuttered, blushing furiously. PERVERT!

He raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? I can think of a few things." Smirk.

GAAAAAAH! What a dirty, little—

The next thing I knew there was a hand grabbing my ass and I was flying up into the air. It took me a second to realize that Gaara was taking me somewhere AWAY from the festival.

…Did he have to hold me by the ass?!

"Hey! Where are we going!?" I asked, getting nervous. Did guys get turned on so easily? I mean, talking about asses didn't particularly raise any raging hormones inside me.

"Somewhere else," he said, casually looking down at me as he jumped from rooftop to rooftop. "I don't like crowds."

I scanned the streets below in a fury over Gaara's shoulder. Damn, we've lost Neji.

"Um… you know, there were booths that I wanted to try!"

There was an unreadable look on his face. "Scared?" Smirk.

ARGH. I want to smack that stupid smirk off his face so badly. "Hell, NO."

The festival lights were quickly fading behind me. "You can slow down now, I'm pretty sure we've lost him," I said, a little disappointed but smug with my reasoning.

"You sound disappointed."

By now, Konoha's gates were easily within sight. I was half expecting him to bring me out to the forest but he slowed down and made a sudden turn, landing below in a dark, narrow, deserted street that I knew all too well. My apartment was only a couple of blocks away.

"No, I'm not," I lied stubbornly.

"You have feelings for him," Gaara observed. I cringed. WOW. Was it so obvious? Stupid Neji. That's when I realized that Gaara still had his hold on my ass.

"Um, can you—?" before I finished, he had already let go and was walking away from me.

"Hey! Where are you going?!" I yelled, running to catch up with him.

"I have no use for a woman who's in love with someone else."

Wow. That was a long sentence.

"I'm not in love with him!" Again, more denial. I'm so pathetic.

"…"

"I'm not!"

"…"

"Stop walking and listen to me for a minute!"

"…This was a waste of my time."

…

"Gaara, I love you!" Okay… I definitely had a mental lapse here or something.

He stopped. Well, that did the trick! …or not.

He turned to face me, furious. Really, I thought he was going to kill me. I mean, if he did, there'd be no witnesses or anything. "Do NOT say that."

His voice sent chills of terror down my body. I was absolutely terrified.

I don't know what came over me. It could've been the fact that I'd wasted my love life pinning after Neji. Or it might've been the sudden realization that I really WANTED to love Gaara even if it only meant getting over Neji… Either way, I burst into tears. I wasn't hysterical or anything, just silently crying.

"I-I'm s-sorry," I whispered, trying to wipe my tears as they came down in furious streams. "I don't know what else to do."

His gaze was no longer furious, but confused. He was smart, though. It only took him a couple of seconds to figure out. "Ah… unrequited."

How… stoic of him. He wasn't sympathizing with me nor was he comforting, really. I covered my face with my hands, head bowed in embarrassment, trying to re-compose myself. Suddenly, I felt two strong hands grip my wrists and gently tug my hands away from my face. Gaara…?

I looked up at him sadly, ashamed.

Yes, I told him with my eyes, I loved and loved and loved this guy pathetically for years and years and years. Years that I will never, ever get back… What are you going to do about it?

It was a slow movement that I almost didn't catch. A hand lifted, palm resting on my cheek, thumb wiping away at my tears. I leaned in to his hand. "You've suffered." Again, not a question.

I tried to smile, but it must've been bitter. "…I… I can't regret it… but I do want to start over… I really do."

His brow furrowed. "Giving up?"

I gave a shaky laugh. "There was never any hope to begin with… fool that I am— I realized too late."

There was a slightly troubled look in his eyes. We stayed like that for a while. For once, the silence wasn't awkward or uncomfortable. Oddly enough… it was sort of nice.

When my tears ran dry, I pulled away gently and smiled at him gratefully. "Thank… you," I said, feeling suddenly shy, "I needed to vent… I just have no one to talk to, really."

He gave a small nod, but continued to stare. His eyes seemed like they were piercing into my soul. I busied myself by fiddling with my hair. He turned suddenly.

"Let's go."

I blinked, slightly startled. "Where?"

"Anywhere."

Whoa. Déjà vu.

I smiled, leaving the gloom behind and feeling suddenly cheerful. "All right!"

Well, we ended up going back to the festival streets. This time, however, we walked side by side, talking about random little things. Well, okay, so mainly I did all the talking while he did most of the listening. I bragged proudly about my one-hundred percent accuracy which his ears perked up at. When we got back, the crowds were as lively and big as it was when we left it. The parade was long over, but the booths were still up and running! I gave a shot at some of them while Gaara stood by and watched me have my fun. One booth in particular caught my eye.

"Ooooh!" I squealed in delight. Without realizing it, I grabbed his hand and pulled him with me. The game was pretty simple: you were given three kunais and you had to hit three different bulls-eyes at the same time with one throw. It was pretty easy!

I accepted my prize: a small little panda stuffed animal.

After that, Gaara offered to get me something to eat, and we both found ourselves sharing a bowl of ramen. Well, I found myself with a bowl of ramen, since Gaara didn't eat a bit.

Finally, the crowds began to thin and Gaara stopped me on the side of the street. I took it as a sign that he 'd had enough for the night. I smiled. The whole thing actually wasn't that bad.

"It was… fun," I said, looking for the right word.

He was looking down at me with the most complicated expression, as if trying to make a hard decision. Finally, he nodded. "Until next time."

My heart skipped a beat. Next time? There'd be a next time?

I was too preoccupied with this thought that I barely noticed his advance, only snapping to my senses when I felt his hands on my shoulders. Without any further warning, he leaned in towards me and kissed my cheek.

It was quick, but…

WOW.

He pulled away and wearing a sort of triumphant smirk on his face, and disappeared with the wind, sand mixing in the air.

I brought a hand to my cheek, gently touching the spot where Gaara had kissed me only moments before. A soft sigh escaped my lips, my feet automatically bringing me home.

"Gaara…" I whispered, lost in thought.

That's when I realized something.

I can definitely learn how to love Gaara.

.

.

.

Little did I know, someone else, at precisely that same time, had also come to quite a realization.

* * *

**A/N:** Okay, that was weird. I know the tenses switch a lot, again, like I said. The last sentence, particularly. Unless Tenten already knew the end of this story, then she wouldn't be able to say that.... Uhhhg.

I tried, really. Deeply and honestly in my heart- I tried.

You guys probably know what's going to happen, right? Poor Gaara might end up heartbroken. :( But that's okay. Gaara is hotter as a single guy anyway. (At least,** I** like to think so!)

Also, thank you so much, my precious, precious reviewers! :D

You guys are the best: FallenAngel92, xXkickass-kunoichiXx, Forgotten Silver Angel, and waterstar.

I mean, really, 360 hits, 4 favorites, 10 alerts, and only 6 reviews? I'm not the best at math, but it just doesn't add up. I don't want a boatload, but I do want some response. I mean, was it good? Awful? REALLY HORRENDOUS?

But who needs them! Hahahaha, I have my four awesome reviewers. :D

'Till next time.


	4. Wasting Time

**Disclaimer:** NO. LEAVE ME ALONE.

**A/N:** YAAAWNN. So much work to do!

Nevertheless, I came up with this.

Ahahaha, oh well. OOC? Again, I tried. Truly.

* * *

.

**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

...

Two weeks have passed since the festival, and the village of Konoha was in a ready state of dreary exhaustion. Yet another day was coming to a close and husbands came home from work to their families and children were ushered back inside the house for dinner. Shops and stands were just about ready to close and everybody was intent on going home to relax after another hard day's work.

Everyone, it seemed, except for two young adolescents just off by a few miles from the village streets. They were there every single day— sunup to sundown— in a small clearing of the forest that they claimed their own. They trained relentlessly and tirelessly. They fought fiercely and calculatingly. They were focused and committed. They were—

Well, the _boy_ was, anyway. The girl, however, was an entirely different story.

"Neji, it's time to go!" the kunoichi whined, waving a kunai in frantic surrender, "the sun's just about down and everybody is going home!"

Neji ignored her ritual pleas (must she do this every day?) and lunged at her. She dodged his unwelcome attack and growled in aggravated frustration. "Neji!" she screeched, annoyed.

"Tenten," he began, equally irritated, "how will you get stronger if you don't take sparring seriously?"

Tenten rolled her eyes. This charade that began precisely two weeks ago began to infuriate her. She'd plead for Neji to stop, he'd say the _exact_ same line each time, and she'd ignore him and leave in a huff.

"GOODBYE Neji," she said, emphasizing the farewell as well as ending the charade. Rubbing her sore shoulders, she walked away from him and sourly began the five-mile trek home.

The white-eyed prodigy stared after her rapidly vanishing figure with a deflating heart. There was a reason behind his (in Tenten's words) "intolerable" desire for hardcore training. From sunup to sundown he manipulated her into spending each day with him training. Foolishly, deep inside him, he knew he was waiting for something to happen. Now that he figured out his love for Tenten, he was scared to let her go. He was waiting— desperately and impatiently waiting. But two weeks had passed right under his nose; time wasted. Every day turned out the same. He'd show up, eager and lost in thought. Before he knew it, and way too soon, Tenten would start complaining, the sun was down, and the day was over. '_What happened?_' the baffled prodigy would always find himself thinking. Then, disappointed, he'd start the long walk home, telling himself that tomorrow would be the day.

Nothing ever happened.

Terribly upset, Neji knew that he'd actually have to say or do something in order for something to happen. The question: what was there to do?

Should he serenade her? Woo her? Buy her gifts?

Angrily, he began to walk home, foot in set towards the direction of the manor when a sudden rush of emotion swelled inside him. Pivoting in the opposite direction, he launched into a full sprint to where Tenten (_his Tenten!_) had disappeared only moments before.

'_Now!_' His mind encouraged in a deafening scream. '_Tell her now!_'

Neji felt his head (or was it his heart?) throbbing in a crazed symphony of nervous anxiety. His ears were ringing with the blood pounding in them and he literally saw red with what he was about to do. Briefly, his mind wandered back to '_tomorrow will be the day!_' but feelings overwhelmed the pathetic thought and he kept at the full-blown sprint.

He was about a mile and a half away from her house (oh how he knew) when he spotted the lone ever-so-familiar figure walking by the side of the road in a languid pace, whistling a merry happy-go-lucky tune.

It was too late to turn back now.

He grabbed her wrist in an effort not to run right past her. "Tenten!" he exclaimed breathlessly.

The young kunoichi, caught off-guard (Neji observed disapprovingly), spun around in a flash to meet her captor. In the horrible momentum of Neji's speed, as well as Tenten's miscalculation of their proximity, fate (actually, gravity) brought them tumbling to the ground in a rather… intimate manner.

Tenten, self-conscious as she was around Neji, rose to immediately get off him when a firm hand lodged itself at her back, ultimately pushing her back down to a certain prodigy's chest. Tenten, shocked, could do nothing but lay still against his beating heart, and tried _very_ hard not to think about how she straddled his hips. In the silence, Neji's apparent lack of breath intrigued her. Was it because he just so obviously ran some three miles in order to catch up with her? Or was it because of their current… position?

Shaking her head and mentally laughing at herself, because that _just couldn't be_, she lifted her head up carefully to peek up at him. Surely she just left something behind?

"Neji," she began carefully, "what…"

She trailed off in silence, not knowing how to continue. Just what had she been asking him again?

Suddenly, she felt herself slowly rising and she realized that Neji was making an effort to sit up with her still atop him. Once the feat was managed, she looked up at him and was momentarily mesmerized. He looked at her deeply, as if trying to convey some secret code or message that he, for some reason, desperately wanted, but could not, say. He stared at her with such intensity that Tenten blushed. _'What does he want?_'

Instantly, she looked away and made yet another attempt to get up. Again, startled as she was, he pressed her closer to him, eventually wrapping his strong arms around her and binding her to his chest. Tenten felt him bury his face in her hair. '_What is going on?_' she wondered, woozy.

Surely, if some random passerby just happened to walk in on them, they would surely misjudge. "Uh… Neji, was there something in particular you needed?" she asked, her voice wavering only a fraction before she somehow managed to control it once more. She needed to get off him. Now. What if some murderous Neji-fangirl happened to be making her way down this very street right THIS INSTANT?

"Wah! Neji!" she half-yelled in sudden worry for her well-being, as well as because she was becoming completely, intolerably awkward with the entire thing, and _he just wouldn't talk to her damn it_!

He pulled away from her, albeit reluctantly, and stared at her once more. "What, Tenten?" he asked in a voice so defiant that Tenten believed herself to be the one making the mistake. She made an attempt to clear her mind, baffled.

"Don't you 'what' me, Hyuuga! What _are you doing_?" Then she blushed _again_ under that look (oh that look!) and tried to squirm out of his grasp. Didn't he reject her… oh, let's say, some few billion times already?!

"Tenten…" he whispered her name so huskily, so desperately that the kunoichi almost swooned in delight. She swallowed with much difficulty.

"…What?" she asked, unaware that she was whispering.

"Urhg… uh…hm…"

"Excuse me?"

"Nrrgmphh… Mrrmmm…"

Tenten blinked. Was the Hyuuga actually struggling for words?

Neji was not having a great moment. He had liked it (more than liked it, actually) when Tenten came crashing down on him, straddling his hips in a manner so suggestive he almost groaned underneath her weight. He had no choice but to hold her softness against him, and on impulse, that was exactly what he did.

And her smell... So intoxicating. Her hair smelled like Jasmine and cherry blossoms and he just wanted to keep smelling her like an over-abusive drug addict.

But now he was completely at a loss. He hadn't been expecting to get this far. What on Earth should he say to her?

"Urghmp… Tenten," he began nervously, "uh…"

"Neji?"

By now, Tenten was starting to be concerned for her teammate. Was he ill? She knew how hard he trained, but did exhaustion and fatigue finally catch up with him? Slowly but determined, she raised a hand and gently pressed it to his forehead.

Blinking, Neji shut his mouth and they looked at each other.

"You don't seem to have a fever…" Tenten mused, more to herself than to Neji. Something was wrong with him. He had never been romantically interested in her, a fact she had proven once upon a time, and his sudden actions unnerved her. '_He's definitely sick_,' Tenten decided.

"Come on," she urged, "let's go to my house."

"Y-y-y-your…"

There was an odd expression on his face which Tenten gladly returned. "What?"

Somewhere deep down Neji's brain, a long-forgotten piece of his functioning mind seemed to be floating back up rapidly. "Tenten," he said coldly and abruptly, causing Tenten to twitch in surprise, "Good work today. I will see you tomorrow."

"…What?" Tenten asked, unsure if she heard him right. For some reason she couldn't even begin to fathom, she felt her swelling heart withering. '_You had hope… don't deny it…_' she berated herself angrily. She hated lying to herself, no matter how bitter the fact. How could she have ever thought that Neji could be anything other than Neji?

"TENTEN!"

In a flash, she found herself tumbling to the hard, dirt road. Neji, stiff and alert stood beside her, avoiding her shocked (and hurt) stare. She turned to the shadow of an approaching figure; the one who had shouted her name.

Tenten squinted in the dark, trying to block out the Hyuuga standing beside her. '_Why isn't he leaving yet anyway?!_' she thought, annoyed. '_Hey… that looks like…_'

"Shizune?!" Tenten exclaimed, surprised. She got up, dusting herself off haughtily. She waited as the older woman stopped in front of her, catching her breath. She was in her traditional kimono, usually a good sign.

"Tenten," Shizune breathed, "I'm so glad I caught you!"

Tenten only looked at her in confusion. Why did she need her so late at night?

In a hurry, Shizune pulled out something from the inside of her kimono and presented it to her. Slowly, Tenten took it between her fingers.

"A response letter! From the village of the Sand!" Shizune breathed excitedly, eyes twinkling, "As well as the Kazekage's promise that he will visit again around the next few days!"

Tenten tried her hardest to ignore the stiff (and very tense) Neji beside her. '_Why should he care?_'

"Oh…" she heard herself say, "He finally responded to my letters…"

Shizune giggled. "Can't wait for the wedding!" she teased, raising her eyebrows suggestively.

"Shi-Shizune-san!" Tenten spluttered, embarrassed, "We hardly know each other! We're just meeting as friends!"

The older woman grinned at her knowingly, nodded at Neji, and left without another word.

In her frustration, Tenten whirled around to confront Neji about earlier, but found that she was already alone in the empty street. The dull streetlights flickered on as the gray sky steadily grew darker.

Aggravated, Tenten let out a high-pitched screech, feeling her nose start to sting as unwelcome tears started to form in her eyes.

"DO YOU HAVE A MULTIPLE PERSONALITY DISORDER OR ARE YOU MAN PMS-ING AGAIN?!" she screamed into the cold air.

This was _so_ not how she had planned to end the day.

Without warning, she broke out into a full-crazed sprint to her house. She ran like never before.

She was on her couch in a record time of five minutes, her ankle swollen from having to kick her door several times before it broke down.

It was only while her tears subsided and when she heard a twinkling noise and felt the gust of wind blowing in through her empty doorway that she remembered the spare key she had placed inside the little house on her wind chime, hanging right above her outside doormat.

* * *

**A/N:** Aw... isn't that sad? :(

Your reviews are like pie to me...

Review!


	5. Dance of the Clueless

**Disclaimer: **Nuuuu. Not mine.

**Kikushi: **Hello everyone. I know this chapter is verrry long... compared to the other chapters, of course. I kind of got carried away! (There is also an explanation at the bottom...)

This chapter is a little racy... however, it's safe enough to stay rated T. :D

Oh, and this is also the first appearance of the long-neglected Naru-gang! Yay! (with exception of Shino and Lee and Sasuke.... sorry!)

* * *

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**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

**...**

Neji sighed, abandoning his pose of meditation completely. '_She's late_,' he thought with a displeased frown. His brow creased in slight guilt at the very thought that he might have somehow contributed to his teammate's present absence. He had gone home, angry at first. How had her writing letters to Gaara bypassed him? But the deeper he wallowed in his pit of hatred, the lesser his hatred grew for Gaara, and the more it grew for himself. Why had he pushed Tenten off in such a manner? After what he did to her, nonetheless! He tormented himself the entire night yesterday thinking of other alternatives as to how he should have acted. '_I should have held her closer, not pushed her off!_' and '_I could've taken her and ran off before she ever got that damn letter!_' haunted his dreams.

Exhausted, both from thinking too much as well as due to his lack of sleep, he soothed himself, thinking, _'It was reflex… that's why I pushed her off…_' But no amount of pep talk could get the sight of a hurt Tenten looking up at him in an undignified position on the road out of his mind.

'_Still_,' the Hyuuga mused, '_that's no reason to be late for training…_'

He heaved himself up easily, looking up at the sky. The sun was already up. So much time had been wasted.

Still frowning, Neji began to walk away from the clearing, his one sure destination being Tenten's house.

He preoccupied himself with thoughts of the letter Tenten had received yesterday, his feet knowing the route perfectly. Gaara, the bloodthirsty killer, sending a love letter? Neji just couldn't believe it (yet, he already assumes that it is a love letter). Out of anger, he had stormed off last night when Tenten got the letter. He felt some degree of betrayal from her, but no matter how much he thought and wished it, Tenten was not his… yet. So in reality, she didn't really betray him… but she should've at least told him that she was writing letters. Then maybe he could've asked her what they were about… or perhaps intercepted them before they were sent—

It didn't take the Hyuuga long to arrive at Tenten's doorstep.

At first, he thought he somehow got lost and ended up on somebody else's apartment door. But one look up and sure enough, there was Tenten's wind chime with her spare key inside… '_Eh, not that I would know…_' Neji thought hastily.

He did nothing for a long moment, staring at the open doorway. His head buzzed with a million questions all at once. '_Did something happen to her? Where is her door? Why is it gone?_'

Taking a calming breath, Neji willed himself inside, determined to find answers for himself. The first thing he noticed as he stepped inside Tenten's carpeted living room was the door. It lay sadly broken on the floor. Then he saw the scattered clothes that decorated the living room.

'_Tenten!_' his mind screamed in paranoid worry.

"Mrmmrpghh…"

Strong willpower was what it took to keep the prodigy from jumping up in surprise. The moan had come from the couch. His mind immediately went to Gaara and for the first time (or maybe second?), he felt like killing.

Cautiously, he made his way around the couch, prepared to lunge and kill whoever had dared to come to Tenten's house and knock down her door and…

Had there been any witnesses, and flash photography, the blackmail of a certain Hyuuga prodigy would have been as easy as pie.

Jaw dropping, with a desperate (and pathetic) attempt to avert his wandering eyes, Neji felt an instantaneous relief wash over him, mixed with rapidly dominating _want and need_, as well as a distant angry thought of '_she left her doorway wide open for the night LIKE THAT?!_'

His comical expression of unguarded shock ultimately faded away as his eyes glazed over.

From past missions, he had always known Tenten to sleep in positions so unlady-like and inelegant with her arms thrown over her head and with her legs sprawled open…

However, Neji had never found her sleeping position favorable or seducing or _inviting_, even…Of course, he found her adorable (yes, he can finally admit it now) most of the time, but not when she was asleep… Maybe the boyish and baggy clothing that she often wore had something to do with it.

She was bare of anything but her undergarments. Neji's eyes traveled from her lacy black bra to her matching underwear. His body ached and trembled in want at the sight of her much-exposed golden brown skin. She was stretched out naughtily on the couch, an arm tucked under her head as a pillow. Her head was titled to the side, but her body lay straight. She wore her hair in their daily style, although wisps of hair had fallen out. One leg was propped up on an armrest while her other leg had strayed off the couch, her toes grazing the carpeted floor. She looked peaceful and angelic and Neji knew that he should leave her now for this obviously much-needed sleep.

'_But training…_' he thought, pained. He knew that it wasn't about training anymore as it was lust.

Unconsciously, he crept closer to Tenten, hand outstretched. Gently, he pushed back some of the hair that covered her face and tucked it behind her ear. '_Kami, this girl…_' he thought, feeling his heart throb for the overwhelming fondness he felt for her. Unable to stop himself, he let his hand stroke her cheek… then gently down her arm… and her bare stomach… and her thigh…

"…Mrrrgph… Ga—"

Upon hearing her talk, Neji withdrew his hand in a flash, backing away quickly. In result, he accidentally bumped into her foot.

"OW! SHIT!"

Tenten sat up immediately, fully awake.

Neji blinked. He had never heard such vulgar language coming from her mouth. He watched as tears (of pain?) filled her eyes and she cradled the foot he bumped into only seconds before.

"OWWW! Owwwww! Ouch ouch ouch!!"

"…Tenten?"

Her head snapped immediately to the direction of his voice. When her eyes grew as wide as saucers, Neji immediately knew two things. One, she had not realized that he had been there and he could've made a quick getaway! And two, he was screwed.

"YOU!" she yelled, obviously embarrassed due to her lack of clothing. Neji had the decency to look away while she tried, with no avail, to cover herself with her hands. '_Damn it, but why must she act so tempting?!_' Neji wondered, gritting his teeth.

"Ah… ggrah…" Tenten, red-faced and furious beyond belief ('_how dare he come here!_'), could do nothing but scream in fury. "HYUUUUUGAAAAA!"

Meanwhile, somewhere in the outskirts of town, a spunky blonde ninja and his pink-haired female companion looked at each other, alarmed.

"Hey, Sakura, what'd you say that was about?" the ninja asked his female friend.

"I'm thinking poor Tenten's finally lost it…"

The blonde scratched his head, confused. "With Neji? Why?"

"Ugh, you're too dense to know, Naruto."

Naruto opened his mouth to retort haughtily when he noticed familiar figures approaching them.

"Naruto! Sakura!" called a guy in a hooded jacket, complete with puppy on the shoulder, waving animatedly to them. On his left was a pale raven-haired girl, trying desperately to catch up.

"Hey!!" Naruto called cheerfully, completely forgetting his previous sentence, "Kiba and Akamaru! Hinata!"

"Hey, don't forget about us!" a new voice called.

Sakura swiveled around, coming face to face with another blonde. "Ino?! Shikamaru and Choji too!"

The female blonde flipped her hair, grinning. "Did you guys hear that just now?" Ino gossiped, wasting no time, "It sounded like Tenten's finally giving that cold-hearted Neji an ass-whuppin'!"

Naruto's eyes grew as wide as saucers. "WHA—?!" he sputtered, "You mean… they're doing… _IT_?!"

With an irritated sigh, Sakura smacked him on the head, yelling, "No, you idiot!" while Hinata looked on, concerned. Kiba snickered in the background, prompting a fight with the injured blonde.

Shikamaru shook his head wearily, ignoring the two immature boys. "I honestly don't know who to be sorrier for... Neji or Tenten?"

"I have an idea!" Choji exclaimed, suddenly munching from a bag of chips he pulled from… who-knows-where. "Why don't we go and just check out what happened?"

Shikamaru jerked his head towards his right. "It sounded like it came from Tenten's apartment."

At this statement, Ino's eyes narrowed. "And how would YOU know where Tenten's apartment is?!" she demanded, hands on her hips.

"What?" Shikamaru asked, slightly confused by her sudden anger towards him, "It's not like I haven't been there before."

Naruto and Kiba stopped fighting in the background. Hinata, relieved, almost sank to the ground.

"Yeah! I've been there too!" Naruto chirped happily, oblivious to the growing awkwardness.

"Same here!" said Kiba while Akamaru gave a small, "Arf!"

Sakura and Ino looked at each other, eyebrows raised. Ino opened her mouth to say something when another voice pitched it.

"I- I've been there as well…"

The two girls stared at Hinata, their mouths agape. "What?! What'd she do, have a party without us?!"

Choji shook his head wisely. "Actually, it was that time when she came back from a solo mission and she was so badly hurt that nobody thought she was going to live…"

"…and the entire village, I think, went to visit her…"

Sakura snorted in disbelief. "Oh yeah? Then where were we?!" she cried, gesturing to herself and Ino.

The response came from everyone simultaneously: "Moping about Sasuke."

Ashamed, the two girls looked away. "W-well…" Sakura started, searching for a decent excuse.

"Hey!" Ino said suddenly, startling the group, "I don't see Lee or Shino anywhere!"

'_Thank God for Ino_,' Sakura thought, grateful for her distraction.

Kiba shrugged, "Shino didn't want to be bothered… as usual."

"And Lee's off with Gai training… as usual," Sakura added.

"Say, Sakura," Naruto piped up, "How come you know so much about Bushy-brow these days?"

Sakura blushed, "What?! It's nothing like that!"

"All right! All right! Are we going or not?" Choji intervened, impatient.

The group quieted at once. "Let's go!"

Back at the apartment, Neji tried to still his beating heart from her world-shattering scream. "Tenten," he croaked hoarsely, "That was _completely _unnecessary."

"Oh, it was, was it?" the brunette challenged, arms crossed tightly in front of her chest. "I have a right to know exactly what you are doing INSIDE. MY. HOUSE."

"You didn't show up for training," the Hyuuga answered simply.

"TRAINING?!" Tenten screeched, furious, "WH—"

"What happened to your door?" Neji cut in abruptly.

Sidetracked, Tenten frowned. "Oh, that. I tried kicking it down…"

Neji raised an eyebrow delicately. "And you didn't think to use the spare key you hid up inside the wind chi—"

Oops.

It was too late to take back his words. Tenten sported an evil gleam in her eyes as she stood up from the couch as if to start advancing on him, her arms at her sides and her hands balled in furious, shaking fists. "Hyuuga…" she said warningly, "I'm going to give you three seconds to explain _how the freakin' hell_ you know where I hide my spare key."

Neji gulped, his eyes wandering. She wasn't even minding her near-nakedness anymore!

"One…" Tenten whispered dangerously.

The prodigy made a move to back away but at the same time, Tenten stepped forward, forgetting about her injured ankle, and began to fall to the floor in pain. "Tenten!" Neji exclaimed, immediately rushing forward. Thankfully, he caught her just in time before she hit the floor, face first.

She collided with him with a breathless, "Oof!" before melting against his warm chest. Neji closed his eyes and held her close, gritting his teeth to stop himself from groaning. She was so soft… so _utterly female_.

"Ah… Neji…"

His eyes flew open and he looked down at her, his breath hitching in his throat. She was looking up at him with those big, brown eyes, her pink lips parted, and her pale face rosy pink in a blush. The warmth her soft body was radiating made Neji ache for more. He wanted, no, _needed_, to feel her body spread out against him.

"Tenten," he whispered hoarsely, in a voice so _needy_, so _desperate_, that the kunoichi's delicate blush grew deeper and their faces were moving _closer and closer_—

"SURPRISE!"

In a flash, Tenten found herself standing behind Neji, obscured from view. Angrily, she peeked over his shoulder. "Wha-?! Guys!" she exclaimed, exasperated and confused as she looked at the gathering. Naruto, Sakura, Ino, Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba (with Akamaru), and Hinata were assembled in front of her, grinning like idiots.

"We just came to see what's up!" Ino explained enthusiastically, "I bet every person in Konoha heard you scream just now, you know!"

Tenten fought the urge to roll her eyes. Of course the world's biggest loudmouth would want the inside scoop. Forgetting her current state of undress, Tenten hopped on one foot to Neji's side, barely getting out the words, "What do you want to know—?" before she realized what she had just done.

Once again, Neji stepped in front of her, but it was too late.

The group's eyes were wide in shock, their jaws dropped to the floor. Neji noticed with dissatisfaction that the boys were literally drooling. There was a verrry tense and awkward pause. Finally, in a moment of delayed realization and decency, Hinata turned away, blushing, and rushed out the door mumbling a soft "e-excuse me!"

Shikamaru followed after her, smirking, and said something that sounded vaguely like "troublesome…" before disappearing out the door, Choji loyally following after him.

The first to recover of the other four were the two boys. "WHOA!" Kiba exclaimed, grinning at Neji in a crude, suggestive manner. "No wonder ya keep her to yourself!"

Neji's eyes narrowed dangerously.

Naruto nodded, suddenly looking thoughtful. "Hey Tenten… Did you know I've always wanted to learn how to use your weapons?"

Kiba laughed loudly, exclaiming "Me too!" and Naruto joined in.

This time, not only Neji, but all three girls glared.

"Maybe you could give me some private lessons some time?" Kiba added smugly.

The brunette, way past embarrassment, opened her mouth to snidely retort (she wasn't unapproachable for nothin'!) when the much-ignored Hyuuga prodigy beat her to it.

"Get. Out."

Naruto and Kiba froze in mid-laugh, Sakura and Ino already making a run for it.

"Hey," Naruto said, his arms up in surrender and slightly trembling at the death glare being directed at him, "We were just kiddin'!"

"Yeah," Kiba added apologetically.

"I won't say it again," Neji whispered in a voice so dangerous that the two boys almost wet their pants. Tenten was looking up at him from behind, surprised beyond reason.

No one in Konoha was prepared for the second scream that shook their humble houses.

"GET OOOOUUUUUUUTTTTTT!!!!!!!"

Nor were they prepared for the other screams that came next:

"NOOOOOOOO!"

"DON'T KILL MEEEE!"

"I TOLD YOU GUYS THAT THEY WERE DOING '_**IT**_'!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

* * *

**End of Chapter 5!**

**..:: **Ahahaha! That was real fun to write! Thank you everyone for all your support. Thank you, my dedicated readers.

But most of all, thank you to all my reviewers- this chapter is your gift from me!

I'm approaching a very busy time in my life. _I may have to put this story on hold, depending on my schedule..._ If I find extra time, I will definitely try to fit in some writing.

So thank you all, again, for your support! ...I hope this chapter was long enough to satisfy.

So until next time, :)

-**Kikushi**

(Read and review please!)


	6. Leaving, Part I

**Disclaimer: **No, Naruto and all of its characters are not mine.

**Kikushi: **Finally, I got a chance to post this up! I've uploaded this chapter a looong time ago, but I never found the time to actually publish it as a chapter.

Anyway, I would say that this is the rising action in the story! Neji leaves, Gaara appears-- what could be better?

* * *

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**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

**...**

Neji resisted the urge to heave a heavy sigh. Tenten had just finished explaining to him exactly just what happened last night. Apparently, after he left her on the street by herself, she had gone home mad, kicking her door ("I lost my key while we were sparring yesterday," she had told him sadly, and Neji felt for the piece of metal tucked safely inside his pocket), completely forgetting the spare key. Once she made her way inside, tired and miserable and angry, her ankle was beyond throbbing, probably broken, and she could no longer lift herself from the couch. She told him with an indifferent face how she threw her clothes off angrily when she realized that she'd have to sleep on the couch for the night, having no energy left to even try and get the first aid kit in the bathroom. "I usually sleep with no clothes on," she said, as if she just commented on the weather, "but I thought that I should at least have _something _on, in case _someone _came barging in…" And then she had narrowed her eyes at him.

Indeed.

Neji felt his head throbbing with a coming migraine.

Presently, he sat on the couch and cradled her swollen ankle carefully on his lap as he examined it. Tenten sat across from him on a stool, sucking in her breath to relieve some of the pain. She looked much more comfortable now that she wore an oversized t-shirt, covering most of her body.

"How is it?" she asked, slightly tilting her head to one side as was her habit to do so. Neji sighed and gently put her foot down from his lap. "It's only sprained," he told her, still eyeing the purple bruise that colored the ankle, "nothing the medics can't cure."

"Whew!" Tenten exclaimed spiritedly. In truth, she hadn't forgotten her anger with him from the previous night. In the course of events, however, Tenten decided on a temporary, mutual truce. There was still something, however, that was bothering her.

"Say, Neji," the kunoichi said carefully, not looking at him, "how DO you know about that spare key?"

There was a prolonged silence, then—

"OWW! YOU—!!"

Tenten nursed her throbbing ankle, glaring venomously at the Hyuuga who had gotten up with a start, knocking her successfully to the floor.

"Put some ice on that," the prodigy told her, as he walked swiftly out the door.

'_Stupid, stupid!_' Tenten thought angrily, struggling to get upright. She flailed her arms uselessly, clutching for anything that might help her get into a standing position.

Just as she had managed a crouch, she hobbled on her useless ankle and was propelled painfully forward into the couch. "Owwww…" she moaned, tears of pain and frustration starting to form in the corners of her eyes, "Stupid Neji…"

Tenten lifted her strong arms and was just about to push herself off the cushions when the sight of a folded letter caught her eye. It was buried in the side of the couch, hidden by the cushions. Tenten realized at once what it was— Gaara's letter.

She still needed to read it, after all, she never did get a chance because Neji—

She made a wild grab for the letter and tore it open in a heartbeat. She scanned its contents and her heart leapt in shock.

_I have made a formal request to the Hokage, as you have no other relatives, to have you pardoned from future missions. I would like to bring you to my lands, where you may, or may not, wish to be a permanent resident, and which, should it be the former, I shall be more than happy to grant. I will come by during the next full moon, awaiting your decision on top of the highest tower._

Tenten stared, open-mouthed at the short, elegantly written note. Slowly, she turned the letter over, expecting more— she was sorely disappointed. _He could've at least signed it_, Tenten though bitterly.

She got up from her position carefully. It was almost noon.

With a glazed expression over her eyes, she stumbled into her room to dress in her normal attire. She would need to get her ankle healed… yes… then she would…

Her mind stopped working. Barely aware of what she was doing, Tenten fell on her bed, face down. The sun was setting fast, and a gloomy darkness filled the room.

_What should I do?_

***********

At precisely the same moment, Neji was lying on his bed in the infamous Hyuuga Manor. His pale lavender eyes surveyed the darkened ceiling without really seeing it.

The fates seemed to mock him these days.

His self-control had been tested again and again; today was no different. He had been tested to his bursting point.

He sighed wearily and sat up, rubbing his eyes. Wherever Tenten was concerned, he seemed to _not _want to control himself…

There was a knock on his door and he straightened himself immediately. "Come in," he said.

A shy Hinata slid open the shoji door, bringing a sliver of light in the dark room from the lighted hallway. She peered in the darkness and said, "Ah… Neji, the Hokage wants to see you right now… I think it's a solo mission."

Neji nodded at her and she excused herself with a quiet, "Good luck."

Rubbing his eyes tiredly, he looked at the rising moon and packed his things neatly but quickly. _A solo mission_, Neji thought, _should keep me from thinking about Tenten for a while._

Slinging his bag over his shoulder, he gave his goodbyes to Hiashi and walked out of the manor in a hazy daze, his feet automatically taking him to the Hokage's office. He listened attentively about his mission, a simple investigation at which Neji fought the urge to roll his eyes, and when he was dismissed, Tsunade told him to "leave at once— no time for anymore goodbyes; I need this report ASAP."

He was ten and a half miles away from Konoha and two hours into the next day when he realized that he had forgotten to say goodbye to Tenten.

***********

Her ankle was feeling much better after an early morning trip to the medics and Tenten headed straight to the training grounds. She knew that Neji was probably waiting for her, pissed by her ten-minute lateness.

As she walked, her mind wandered back to Gaara's letter and her heart fluttered in nervous anticipation. _I can't just go_, Tenten thought, biting her lower lip, _what if I'm needed for a mission? And who will Neji train with? I'll just tell Gaara that I can't go… I'll use Neji as an excuse…_

She walked into the clearing of the forest, a full explanation ready on her lips, only to find it empty. Tenten stopped in her tracks. "Neji?" she called out tentatively. Did he go get her at her house? It was strange for the Hyuuga not to be present.

"Tenten?"

She whirled around at the familiar voice. "Lee! When did you get back?"

The strange green spandex and the odd bowlcut her friend sported never failed to amuse her. It was only when Lee had gone on his two-week mission with Gai-sensei that Tenten realized how fond she was of him. It had certainly been quieter without the two goofballs around.

"Just now!" Lee reported enthusiastically, "And I must do 500 laps around Konoha immediately before I can sleep!"

Tenten opened her mouth, ready to give Lee a piece of her mind for even _thinking_ about training right after a heavy mission when Lee beat her to it.

"But Tenten, why are you here? Are you training by yourself?"

"No, of course not, Lee," Tenten sighed, already almost exasperated. "Neji's just not here yet… which is strange."

"Ah! But Tenten, have you not heard yet? Sakura-san just told me that Neji was sent out on a solo mission last night!"

Tenten stood still for a moment, experiencing a strange sort of vertigo. Neji was sent out last night. _And he didn't tell her_. How many people and friends had she encountered on her way to the clearing just a few minutes ago? _A lot_, a voice answered in Tenten's head, _and they didn't tell you because they all assumed you knew._

But Tenten didn't know because Neji never told her.

Tenten opened her mouth to speak, only to find it dry. She swallowed painfully before trying again, "Ah, is that so? Well, that explains why he's not here."

Lee nodded vigorously and said, "Yes, that is why! Then Tenten, you must train with me!"

"No thanks Lee," Tenten said hastily, "Since that slave-driver's not here, I think I'll just go back to bed and catch up on my sleep… "

"But Tenten! Where is your fighting spirit?! The power of youth—"

"_LEE._"

"Okay, Tenten, I understand… But if you ever feel the need, I—"

"_**NO!**_"

***********

Fuming, Tenten stomped back angrily to her house, slamming her brand new door and almost knocking it off its hinges.

"Since when did he stop telling me about his missions?!" Tenten burst out, pacing madly in front of her sofa, "I'm like, the closest thing he has to a best friend!"

It was an unspoken thing between them— they always said goodbye before going on different missions, which really weren't common. Tsunade usually always stuck the two of them together like peanut butter and jelly… And why not? Neji was superb; a freakin' prodigy— everyone knew that. Then there was her, Tenten. She knew all about Neji's blind spot and they had strategies that worked perfectly together. They were like a dynamic duo.

Tenten fell back on the sofa. The past few days completely wore her out.

Over the next couple of days, Tenten sulked and obsessively polished and sharpened all of her weapons alone in her room. She had constantly been ignoring Lee's frequent visits to plead her to train with him, Ino and Sakura's offers to go shopping, and Naruto and Hinata stopping by to ask her if she wanted to get some ramen. No doubt her friends thought she had no life without Neji working her out like a slave all day.

But still! Why didn't he tell her?

_He can't just break such a long tradition!_ Tenten thought angrily.

It was the second night after Neji Hyuuga's departure and Tenten sat rigidly on a stool next to her window, her weapons scattered about. Angry as she was, she still couldn't help the thoughts that plagued her: _Is he okay? What is he doing now? Is he finished yet? When is he going to get back?_

Tenten sighed. She knew she was making a big deal over it… and it really wasn't in her habit to do so. _Maybe it's Gaara's letter that's making me all touchy, _Tenten though idly.

She stared out of the window, lost in thought. The night of the festival came back to her… and Gaara's goodbye kiss."So soft," Tenten whispered against the glass, fogging up the window. She often thought about Gaara, since that day. It was unusual for her. She never thought of any other guy other than Neji! But Neji was a hopeless case… strictly forbidden to her… and always _just _out of reach. Tenten knew that he was probably going to end up marrying someone from his clan or just stay single his whole life.

"What a waste," Tenten breathed, a familiar sorrow washing over her. Always when she thought about Neji, it would reach a sad, devastating conclusion. _I guess we're just not meant for each other, _thought Tenten sadly.

However, when Gaara entered her mind… Her heart started to hammer against her chest and her stomach fluttered. What was this? Hope? It seemed like such a long time ago when she last felt like this. Perhaps she really HAD given up hope on Neji after all.

Her eyes returned to the scene in front of her. Konoha's lights were already bright in the black streets and the sky had darkened hours ago. The moon—

Tenten's eyes widened and her jaw dropped.

_I will come by during the next full moon, awaiting your decision on top of the highest tower._

It was a full moon! Without thinking, Tenten gathered up her weapons in a jumbled mess, rolled up her scrolls and rushed out into the streets.

Panting, Tenten ran to the Hokage's place— Konoha's highest tower, everyone knew.

It was already very dark and there was nobody on the streets anymore. _Is he still there?_ Tenten wondered as she went, _or did he leave?_

Everything else was a blur to her until the tower was finally in full view. She ran towards it, looking up while she did so—

Her heart almost stopped. Tenten stopped in her tracks, looking up and trying to catch her breath.

There he was— a mighty figure on top of the tower, his entire being shadowed by the full moon behind him. He was looking down at her from many feet above, his arms folded casually.

Before Tenten could take another step forward, he leapt down the sixty feet, landing lightly in front of her.

He was exactly as she remembered, wearing his back getup in his aloof manner. He walked towards her, their eyes remaining contact the entire time.

"I thought you would not come," he said in a low murmur when he was five feet in front of her.

_Well, at least he's more talkative today! _She thought.

He walked closer when she did not answer. "I waited for hours."

Tenten snapped out of her daze. "I- I completely forgot about the day!" she said truthfully.

He scanned her from head to foot with slightly raised eyebrows. Tenten almost gasped. She had forgotten about her clothes! Here she was, _in front of Gaara_, wearing the stupid slutty pink lace babydoll Ino had given her last Christmas! _Why did I even wear this today?!_ Tenten wondered angrily, a furious blush rising on her cheeks. The truth was, Tenten found it comfortable sleepwear, though she'd never admit it to anyone. On top of that, she was barefoot— having rushed out of the house— and her hair was down (_and probably a mess_, Tenten thought).

When Gaara continued to stare, Tenten brought her hands up (still clutching the scrolls that contained her weapons) and folded them over her chest pointedly. Gaara smirked.

"Let's go," he said.

Tenten's eyes widened. "B-but I'm not packed!"

He gave her another looking-over (_pervert_, Tenten thought) and saw her scrolls, which he knew from the Chuunin Exams held her weapons.

"That is enough," he said, nodding to her scrolls. From seemingly out of nowhere he produced a red cloak which he thrust to her.

Grateful, Tenten hurried to put it on and before she even had a chance to put her arms in the sleeves, she felt herself colliding into a strong, hard chest and being carried away.

_It's only a visit, Tenten!_ She told herself, _and besides, it'll help you stop thinking about Neji!_

And with that, Konoha's Weapons Mistress and the Fifth Kazekage disappeared into the night.

**...**

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**End of Chapter 6!**

**..:: **Feedback really helps keep me going! Any comments about the story, my writing style, or whatever, _good or bad_, I'd be happy to hear it!

So please, please, please, tell me about it! I am first and foremost writing because I want to improve, although I really like the pairing of this couple as well, and there's no better place for criticism than the internet!

Furthermore, as the reader, you should get what you want. I have a definite plot and ending to this story, but what I want to know is whether the story is too fast-paced or too wordy, anything like that!

Well, it might be a while before the next chapter... but stay with me and I promise to go all the way. :)

-**Kikushi**


	7. Leaving, Part II

**Disclaimer:** To renew feelings of failure, I repeat that NO I DO NOT OWN NARUTO NOR WILL I EVER DAMMIT.

**A/N: **Nope, society! I'm afraid that I am not yet in the Uncompleted Fanfics Grave... I'm just slow moving, is all.

More NEJITENTENGAARA goodness. But remember folks, this is a NejiTen fiction.

* * *

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**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

**...**

_"I hope you all like your teammates because from here on out, we'll all be together forever!" _

_The three sullen children avoided each other's eyes and stared straight ahead silently. They did nothing, said nothing, and thought nothing._

_Gai sighed at his new students. "All right, why don't we all try and get along now? Then we can go straight to training together! The power of youth intensifies with unity!"_

_"What's the point?" the child with black hair spoke, "I can't even do taijutsu." _

_"What's the point?" the child with cold, blank white eyes sneered, "I don't need them."_

_"What's the point?" the child, the orphan, the girl, asked, "I'm better off alone."_

_And their teacher, startled, blinked and stared at them. "I've got a lot of work to do!" he exclaimed enthusiastically. He smiled at each of them and pointed first, at the black-haired child. "You don't need taijutsu to be as strong as I am!" _

_Then he pointed to the child with the cold, white eyes and said seriously, "One day, there will come a time when you will need your friends."_

_Then he pointed at the orphan, the girl, and told her, "You say that because that's the only way you've ever lived. One day you'll want someone to take care of you too."_

_And she scoffed at him. They all scoffed at him._

_How would he know?_

***********

Tenten opened her eyes to blinding daylight. "Where am I?" was her first thought. She vaguely remembered traveling through the forest, but the rest of last night's events were temporarily lost from her mind. She was lying down on a rather comfy, but very low, bed. A soft blanket had been thrown over her. She turned to her side, sleepily taking account of her surroundings. The room she was in was very big— it must have been the size of two of her apartments, room and kitchen and bathroom and all.

The sunlight beat down upon her eyelids insistently, urging her to rise. Slowly, she did, and when her bare feet touched the cold graying earth Tenten stretched and let out a yawn. "That's right," she voiced to herself, and then more softly, "Gaara."

The sound of his name on her lips fascinated her and filled her with pleasant warmth. He had carried her without stopping to his village, where he reigned over his people. Although it had bothered her immensely at first, for Tenten was not used to being carried around like some weak damsel in distress, she had started to feel rather settled in Gaara's strong arms. Tenten suspected that she must have fallen asleep sometime during the journey. Even so, it amazed Tenten that it only took the young Kazekage a mere night to travel from Konoha to Sunagakure. She briefly wondered how fast Gaara must have been running. "If it had been Neji –" she began, unconscious of her trail of thought. She stopped, frowning.

"I wonder if Neji's back from his mission…"

A sudden rapping on her door made her jump. Instinctively she stood her ground, ready for attack. A half second later, Tenten scowled at herself, feeling rather foolish. She straightened, dropping her arms to her sides and cleared her throat.

"Um— c-come in!"

Whoever she had been expecting, it certainly had not been Gaara, who paraded her room now as though he owned it. They stared at each other as though sizing each other up. He smirked at her.

"You really leave nothing to the imagination, don't you?" he said smoothly surveying the skimpy nightgown that she had left Konoha in.

Gasping and blushing furiously, Tenten made a wild grab for the blanket on the bed, wrapping it around her and glaring at the cocky figure standing in front of her.

"Maybe you just never had imagination to begin with!" she snapped, not quite making sense, when he continued to ogle her. His eyebrows rose, but his smirk grew intolerably wider.

_He certainly seems more relaxed now that he's in his own land_, Tenten observed, irritated.

He walked closer to her and she stood frozen on the spot; Gaara had that effect on her and Tenten suspected that it must not be much different for other people he interacted with. Slowly, he reached for her long hair, which was still down and a mess, and fingered it. Tenten held her breath when his fingers brushed her cheek, dragged down her neck, and stopped at the curve of her shoulder. _What in the name of Kami is he doing!?_Tenten wondered, feeling lightheaded. Her fingers trembled, dropping the blanket that had been covering her. It fell to the ground, unnoticed. Gaara's index finger hooked under the thin strap of her nightgown on her shoulder and tugged it down her arm, almost spilling her breasts. His other hand reached for her other strap, ready to do the same and reveal her to him, when he uttered a soft sigh and backed away.

"Temari will come for you. Wait here."

He turned around, walking to the door, then stopped. Without looking at her he spoke, "I am busy today. I will see you tonight at dinner." He left quickly, as if he couldn't get out fast enough.

Still rooted to the floor, Tenten shut her mouth, which had dropped open, and slowly reached for the fallen strap and placed it back upon her shoulder.

"What… was… that…?"

***********

Neji Hyuuga sighed wearily and surveyed the tranquil little village from his very well-hidden spot atop the overlook mountaintop. He had finally completed his mission successfully and Neji dreaded to go back home so quickly. A mere couple of days away from home collecting data were not sufficient enough to be labeled as a "solo-mission" for the prodigy; it also did not provide him enough time to solve his problem that was Tenten.

He had forgotten to say goodbye to her in his hurry to leave and was sure that she was fuming about it at the very moment. His lips twitched in an almost smile when he thought about the dangerous special welcome-home greeting he may receive from her upon his return. Sighing once more, Neji made his long way home.

It was a midday afternoon when Neji arrived in Konoha. The streets were busy and passersby were sweltering under the blistering sun. He had barely taken five steps through the gate when a yell attracted his attention.

"NEJI! NEJI!"

Neji turned his head to see an unmistakable flash of green spandex speeding towards him.

"Lee," he addressed politely, "You're back."

"Yes! But Neji! A most unfortunate thing has happened!" Lee yelled importantly. He was sweating profusely as if he had just been doing some backbreaking exercises under the torturous sun and Neji didn't doubt that he had been.

Neji waited for the news, but when Lee didn't say anymore he sighed, irritated, and prompted, "And…?"

"Our youthful flower! Our beautiful blossoming pride, Tenten, has disappeared!"

There was a pause.

"How?!"

Lee opened his mouth to answer when more yelling attracted both of their attention.

"NEJI! NEJI!"

"Naruto!? Sakura-san!" Lee exclaimed, surprised. The pair ignored him and turned to Neji.

"Neji!" they panted, weary from running, "We've heard you just got back—" Naruto started.

"TENTEN'S GONE!" Sakura interjected loudly.

Lee nodded beside her, "I was just getting to the details when—"

"NEJI! NEJI!"

Neji hissed, annoyed, and turned to see Kiba, Hinata, and Ino who was dragging her teammates, Shikamaru and Choji, by their arms with some difficulty, running towards him.

"Neji, Tenten—"

"—gone, someone saw—"

"—door open, neighbor called—"

Neji held up a hand, his head throbbing painfully. "Enough," he said, and they fell silent.

_Why is everyone coming to me?_ He thought, annoyed. Instead he asked, "When did this happen?"

"Only last night!" Ino piped up, beating Sakura.

"And why did you all wait to tell me this?" he asked quietly.

"Hey, we only just found out!" said Naruto followed by Kiba's "Yeah! It's not like we were waiting for you; I'd have rescued her by now from whoever kidnapped her if I'd found out earlier!" Akamaru yapped in agreement on his shoulder.

Neji turned to look at him. "She was kidnapped?" he asked sharply.

"You don't know that, you idiot!" Sakura hissed at Kiba. He glared back at her.

"So you think she just left in some hurry, leaving her door open like that, in her nightgown—"

"Hey!" Naruto piped up, interested, "How would you know she left in her nightgown?"

There was a slight pause in which Akamaru whined guiltily.

"Oh, _puh-leaze_tell me you didn't sniff around her apartment!" Ino exclaimed, looking affronted.

"W-well, at least I also know this," Kiba retorted quickly, for he sensed the Hyuuga prodigy's death glare on him, though he didn't dare look, "Tenten left with her scrolls!"

"Th-thank goodness, a-at least Tenten-san has her weapons," Hinata stuttered.

Neji pondered this for a moment, and then asked, "No one knows where she is?"

They all shook their heads and shrugged, but Choji piped up from under Ino's arm. "If I may," he began, clearing his throat, "Why don't we pay a visit to the Lady Hokage?"

"Ooooh yeah!" Naruto exclaimed happily among the murmurs of agreement, "The old hag!"

"Let us go!" Lee exclaimed, and as they all rushed to her office a distinct mumble that sounded awfully like, "This is so troublesome," could be heard under Ino's other arm.

***********

Tsunade had been looking forward to a quiet evening with her stack of paperwork and hidden bottle of sake under her jacket. Needless to say, she had been most displeased with the surprise barrage of teenagers that assaulted her that mid afternoon.

"Shizune!" she called, deeply irritated as she tried to pry off a certain annoying blonde ninja off of her. A young woman materialized in front of her and surveyed the scene, blinking. The office was in ruins, and quite cramped. Shizune recognized Neji, Lee, Sakura, Ino, Choji, Shikamaru, Kiba, Hinata, and about five Narutos, all of whom were surrounding the weary Hokage.

"Y-yes?" she said, taking her eyes off the bunch.

"Give these brats what they want," Tsunade sighed, "I need a break." Before Shizune could stop her, Tsunade rushed out of the room in merriment, clutching her sake. Thinking of the difficult chase ahead of her, Shizune turned to the others. "What are you all here for?"

"Tenten's disappeared!" Naruto proclaimed, obnoxiously loud.

To their surprise, Shizune smiled. "Ahh, yes…" she said, her eyes twinkling, "she's taken some days off in Sunagakure, with Gaara."

Unaware of the horrorstruck faces of her audience (including all five Narutos), Shizune went on enthusiastically, "It's been a long time coming, you know, love for both of them… and besides, if they get married, think of the powerful alliance our villages would have!"

She stopped abruptly, finally realizing their faces, and her own face fell. "What? Did I say something?"

A quiet voice spoke, breaking the silence. "I'm going to Sunagakure."

Everyone looked around at Neji and one by one they all agreed to do the same.

"What?!" Shizune exclaimed, shocked, "Absolutely not! Not all of you! Sakura, you're needed here, you know that!"

Sakura looked crestfallen. "B-But—"

"And you two!" Shizune continued, pointing at Kiba and Hinata who immediately looked subdued, "Your team has already been scheduled for a mission later this week!"

"Well that leaves us then!" Naruto exclaimed, gesturing to himself, Lee, Ino, Choji, and Shikamaru.

At this, Shizune could find no protest except, "Why do you all need to go?" she snapped, suddenly strict and angry, "Tenten needs this vacation! Gaara too! You guys might ruin the chance for them to get together—!!"

At this, Neji started for the door, only to stop once he was under the frame.

"Sorry to ruin your plans," he said to her coldly, his back to all of them, "But she's mine."

As he strode out of the office he barely heard the cheers of his peers.

_I hope I'm not too late_, thought Neji.

**...**

* * *

**... Thank you, my reviewers, this chapter was for you! ...**

There you have it guys. Again, I do not know when the next update will be, sorry.

Plus, if there have been weird mistakes, I do apologize-- I haven't been catching up with Naruto lately (or actually, I haven't watched/seen/heard/read Naruto in a loooong time).

But, again, reviews do help with the reminding! It'll be hard forgetting this story when I get emails now and then about it.

lots of lubblubblubb, Kikushi.


	8. Arrival of the Storm

**Disclaimer:** Again, I do not own Naruto, _damn it_. These stupid disclaimers make me feel so worthless. (sob)

**A/N:** Hey! Long time no see, NejiTen fans! I'm back and still very much aliveee!

Now, I've got the story line all set up. This story is looking to be about 15 chapters long... so it's not much until the end. (sniff sniff sniff)

To those developing a liking towards Gaara/Tenten, keep in mind that this is a NEJITEN fic! I mean, I love GaaTen too, but I can't please you all. (sob)

Anyway, have fun with this one!

Oh, and remember people,_ ITALICS,_ like _THIS_ and _this phrase_, means THOUGHTS. So _Italics_ = thoughts.

However, not all italics are thoughts... so... just have some common sense, I guess...

* * *

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**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

The full moon was a bright, gigantic orb in the starless Sunagakure night sky. It was almost as big as the horizon itself, like a big silver hole opening up to a whole different dimension.

Tenten was lying on her back atop the highest roof, her hands tucked casually behind her head, her eyelids half-closed and her eyes only half-surveying the full moon. She donned a dark blue kimono made of silvery satin that was as deep as the night sky. Her hair was done up in her customary double buns and she had slipped off her sandals, which were lying next to her.

A cool breeze swept by her, and Tenten smiled, closing her eyes as the wind caressed her. The air held a pleasant musk of the desert and a light coat of sand floated with the winds, occasionally getting in one's hair and face and having a surprisingly pleasant tickling sensation.

Tenten shifted and winced slightly. Her feet were sore from all the walking she did around the small village. Already she was notorious as the Kazekage's Lady, a title which she took great pains to neither deny nor confirm to the friendly, if somewhat a little intimidating at first, people of Sunagakure. If Tenten was completely honest with herself, she would say that she had a blast. She had not had so much fun in so long. It truly felt as if she was on vacation, even though she hadn't exactly been assigned on any mission back in Konoha for a while.

But there was a part of Tenten that did not want to be honest with herself. A part that still, foolishly, clung on to Neji.

Tenten gazed up at the bright moon overhead, shining its glowing silver light down upon her like a spotlight. _It would be so easy_, she thought, _to just leave everything in Konoha behind and move to Sunagakure…_

_If I hadn't met Neji._

The day had filled an empty part of Tenten that had once known nothing but shadows. She felt like she really _belonged_. She had played with the village children, exchanged stories with weary mothers and lively merchants, helped the friendly laborers, and mingled with others of her age group. She really bonded with the people. For once, it felt as if she had a real family— not a substitute one like she had with Gai, Lee, and Neji. If she chose to live permanently in Sunagakure, Gaara would marry her, and then she really could belong with the people and the village she so fell in love with in just a day. She would be the Kazekage's Lady and then the entire village really could be a part of her family.

Tenten blushed at the thought. _Gaara's wife…_

The first time she had laid eyes on him during the Chunin Exams, she thought him to be scary. But something had happened to him… something changed about him. He no longer emitted the strong vibes to kill, as he once used to, but now seemed calmer, relaxed, and much more peaceful. Tenten furrowed her brows and wondered briefly what had happened to cause this change.

_One day I'll ask him_, she thought. If she chose to stay, Tenten knew that she would eventually know everything about his past. She was confident that she could love him, or at least learn how, and she was even more confident that in time Gaara could learn how to, at the very least, trust her. Tenten suspected that love was too much to expect at the moment.

IF she chose to stay. Tenten sighed and stretched out lazily, yawning. At the moment, she was very much considering to stay. Tenten sat up and surveyed the moonlit streets and houses of the small village, affection bubbling up inside her. This beautiful village could be _hers_, along with Gaara.

For a brief second, Tenten was filled up with soaring elation. She was floating up in the night sky, way too happy to be true…

But the happiness vanished as though lightning-struck. Tears formed in Tenten's eyes, and slid slowly down her cheeks. She was never going to own Sunagakure with Gaara. She was never going to live in the beautiful village of Sunagakure. She would never know of Gaara's past.

Because she had dropped her heart at Neji's feet, and she wasn't sure she could pick it up again.

* * *

Neji Hyuuga stared around the campfire with blatant irritation. Ino, Choji, and Shikamaru, close as ever, were arguing between the three, no _two_, of them—Shikamaru was not an active participant—whether Shikamaru was the strongest of the group or not. Ino insisted that it was her who tied the team together, and was therefore the strongest, while Choji argued that Shikamaru's intelligence made him the most valuable and that his easy-going aloofness allowed numerous allowances for someone like Ino.

"_Someone like me_? What's _that _supposed to mean?" Ino screeched.

"I'm only saying that if Shika and I weren't your teammates, you might have been grouped with two less patient boys and—"

"Are you calling me annoying?"

"I'm just saying that it's a good thing we don't pick up the bait you always throw at us! Otherwise we'd always be fighting—"

"SO I START FIGHTS, IS THAT IT?"

"WE'VE NEVER HAD ONE! Thanks to Shikamaru!" Choji countered desperately, flailing a hand at Shikamaru.

The guy in question was lying in between them with his eyes closed, his arms tucked under his head. Neji could not tell whether he was sleeping or not, but he was glad that Nara wasn't joining in on the pointless argument. Neji's eyes wandered a little bit behind the trio, where Lee was enthusiastically sparring with ten—no, eleven Narutos, Neji corrected himself. He sensed the hidden Naruto, most likely the real one, hiding up in one of the treetops, ready for ambush. The two had boundless, if somewhat a little worrisome, energy.

"Getting tired yet, Bushy Brow?" the Narutos taunted.

"Not even a little!"

Neji sighed and rolled his eyes. He stood up, briefly capturing the attention of the others. "I'm going for a walk," he said brusquely. He could feel their eyes following his retreating back into the thick, dark woods, away from the clearing he had managed to scout as their campsite for the night.

The voices of his comrades faded away with every step he took. Soon, silence was upon him, and Neji found himself left to his thoughts. He sat upon a rock and looked up at the starless sky. The forest was thick, almost obscuring the entire sky from view, but the moon was hard to hide. It was an unusually large full moon. Neji wondered if Tenten was watching the same silver glow of the bright orb. They were, after all, living beneath the same sky… Neji sighed, and tried to think of his situation.

_If we leave at dawn, we'll reach Sunagakure by noon…Then I'll find Tenten—_

Tenten. She had been on his mind all day. What was she doing right now? Was she with Gaara? The very thought made him grit his teeth in frustration. He had half a mind to leave his team behind this instant and run off to Sunagakure himself. Trying to control himself and resist the temptation, he walked a little way back to the campsite and stopped short in the darkness. The spot where he was standing could see directly into the clearing, and he had a pretty good view of everyone. He was just close enough to hear their voices carried by the wind and knew that even though they could not see him in the darkness behind the trees, they at least sensed him nearby.

Shikamaru had woken up and was half propped up by his elbows. Ino was leaning close to him with a pout on her face. "Shika, I burned my finger!"

"That's what you get for trying that out."

"But Choji _dared_ me to do it!"

Choji snickered and Ino shot him a glare, opening her mouth to retort. Shikamaru, sensing danger, sat up between them. "Let me see."

Ino gave him her hand which Shikamaru studied briefly before complacently blowing on it. "You're fine."

Neji thought he heard him mumble, "Troublesome!" after it. He watched the trio in the darkness, his mind wandering. Tenten was not so spoiled as Ino. If it had been Tenten who burned her finger, she would have pressed it upon a cool surface and disregarded it after that. She would not have caused such a scene about it… But as he watched them, Neji felt an odd feeling of loneliness. The Ino-Shika-Cho team was so close to each other, almost like brothers and sister. Neji's eyes traveled farther behind the group, resting on Lee. He, Lee, and Tenten were a good team, but they were never close. Looking back on things, Neji supposed that Lee and Tenten had developed a bond that went farther than friends. They were brother and sister. Neji felt another, more urgent unfamiliar pang in his chest. Perhaps it was only him who felt that way. Tenten and Lee got along well. Had it been he, Neji, who prevented his team from becoming as close as the Ino-Shika-Cho group?

A long time later, Neji lay silently with his comrades in the darkened clearing. The fire had been put out and the only sounds were that of the night and Naruto's loud snoring. The moon overhead seemed impossibly larger in the quiet. Lee and Naruto were sleeping a few feet apart from each other under the cover of the same tree, and Ino was snuggled between her "brothers" Shikamaru and Choji. Neji supposed that they slept the same way when they were gone for a mission and had developed the habit of sleeping that way. They probably knew everything about each other… likes and dislikes, fears, strengths and weaknesses…

It saddened Neji to think that, apart from battle stratagems and the bare basics, he knew almost close to nothing about his two teammates.

* * *

Tenten had woken up to a rather gloomy day. The sun was meekly peeking through the thick clouds in the sky that threatened a storm. Despite the gloom, Tenten had been considerably giddy since breakfast. She surveyed herself in the mirror, thinking back to the previous night.

Dinner with Gaara had been a silent treat. Tenten didn't know what to say and she couldn't figure out whether he felt the same way or if it was just customary for him not to speak during dinner. Towards the end, however, Gaara quietly mentioned that he could show her around the next day, as he was temporarily freed from his duties by his older brother in order to allow some time with his guest.

Tenten had wondered whether he knew that she had spent the day exploring the entire village, but kept quiet. She wasn't exactly sure if he had just indirectly asked her out on a date, and she didn't want to ruin any sort of chance…

Tenten giggled gaily and twirled around in her red, fitting cheongsam. It was decorated with shimmery golden leaves at the bottom hem. She felt like a princess in a castle!

A sharp knock cut off her laughter. She cleared her throat, feeling foolish, and said, "Come in!"

A young girl peeked through the doorway shyly. "Tenten-sama," she said, bowing clumsily and ignoring Tenten's protests about the formality, "The Kazekage sent for you."

Tenten's heart leaped. "Is he in his office waiting?"

"Y-yes, m'lady," the girl stuttered, "I'm to send you there."

Tenten gave her a kind smile. "Thank you, but you don't have to walk me there! I know where it is. I'll just take myself there, okay?"

She watched as the girl bowed her way out, closing the door quietly behind her. Tenten gave a final glance at her reflection in the mirror and bit her lower lip nervously. Why was she so excited? Tenten felt a momentary fear surge through her. When had she developed these feelings for Gaara? It wasn't quite love, but it was a growing attraction that really frightened her. In all her years she had only known Neji to attract her. Even Kiba's attempts at flirting with her did nothing to her heart. Tenten had never been the kind of girl to fall in love easily, and she had been so sure that Neji was to be her one and only love. Now it seemed as if her heart was expanding and making a new wing… dedicated to Gaara. It wasn't as grand as the place where she stored her piled up feelings for Neji over the years, but it was growing steadily with every second, minute, hour, day, she spent with the quiet Kazekage.

Tenten scowled, furious. _What the hell am I thinking?_

She whirled around and left the room, heading for the East wing of the manor. Being the naturally curious ninja she was, Tenten had already scouted the entire manor (not to mention the entire village…) and was confident she knew her way around pretty well. Her feet, she was sure, were leading her to the right direction—

_Okaaaay. When did this hallway get here?_

Tenten blinked, halting in her step. A dead end. She was facing a single, iron door, different from all the other wooden ones.

_Am I seriously lost?_

The slight shiver that ran down her spine gave her an immediate clue as to who was standing behind her even before she saw his shadow drop upon the carpeted floor. "Gaara!" she exclaimed, as she whirled around. She was not disappointed in her assumption.

He was dressed in his regular red attire, his arms folded across his chest with an aura of careless grace. Tenten noted that he wore his sand gourd today.

"Where are you going?" he asked, eyeing the iron door behind her.

"Oh! Well, I thought I knew the way to your office so I started walking—"

"To the torture chamber?"

"Yes, to the tor— WHAT?" Tenten spluttered in surprise. She added silently in her head, _and I've been sleeping under the same roof? _

"Come," said Gaara, extending a hand. Tenten took it shyly and he walked her out of the manor and to the village, hand-in-hand.

"Sooo… Where are you taking me?" Tenten asked, her mood brightening.

Gaara frowned. "Around the village."

Tenten almost rolled her eyes. _Great, another smartass. _"Yeah, I get that, but—"

"Eeek! No! What are they doing?"

"So it's true!"

Tenten turned her head to see two young girls, perhaps a little bit younger than her, glaring from behind a makeshift bench.

"What's their problem?" Tenten grumbled, her spirits falling a little. "Do you know them?"

Gaara gave a brief glance towards the girls' direction. They squealed (whether in fright or in delight, Tenten could not tell) and ran off. "Matsuri and Sari. Village girls."

Tenten grinned slyly. "Well, well, aren't _you_ popular."

He stopped walking and looked at her directly. "They've got no chance with you."

"What…!" Tenten blushed in embarrassed surprise, "Since when have you been so—?"

Her words died in her throat when Gaara flashed her a rare fleeting grin. It had the astounding effect of making his usually somber face cherubically playful.

Blushing an even deeper shade of red, Tenten could barely speak furiously, "Why you tease—!"

She quieted when he lifted her hand and brushed it gently against his lips. "I mean it," he murmured against her skin, sending an electrifying feeling down Tenten's arm.

_Why?_ Tenten's mind screamed frantically for reason, _why why WHY is he being so romantic? Who even knew he could be romantic?_

Tenten could only stare back at Gaara, speechless. He was surveying her with his intense, green eyes and Tenten found her mind wiped away, leaving neither logic nor reason. Without realizing it, their faces had inched slowly, moving closer and closer together. Their breaths mingled and their eyes fluttered shut—

"TENTEN!"

Her eyes snapped wide open at the familiar voice.

**"Neji!"**

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* * *

.

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Mwuahahahaha! Am I not evil or what?

Well there you have chapter numero eight! To those who were so eager to read the story and to those who just don't care about what I say (cry) and completely skipped the above note that I made before the beginning of the chapter, I mentioned that this is looking to be a** FIFTEEN**-chaptered story.

So, since I basically have all the outlines done, this is nearly at its end! (cry)

And now that I've sent out this nice chapter, I'm not sure when I'll strike again with the next one... so reviews please! They serve as good reminders, since I am a very forgetful person...

Thank you to all my past reviewers. You guys make writing worthwhile!


	9. No More Words

**Please read my note at the end of this chapter. Thank you.**

I don't think I really have to, but to remind you guys:

_Italics-_- past/thoughts.

**Bold**- the present.

I know, I'm sorry, it's a confusing chapter.

I dedicate this rather melancholy chapter to my mysterious anonymous reviewer, **Reeses Choco** (see note at the bottom of the page).

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* * *

**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

.

_The front door opened after what seemed like an eternity and the assembled group impatiently pacing around the walkway halted in their footsteps, looking up eagerly at the Nara who was now closing the door behind him._

"_Temari said that they took a walk around the village," Shikamaru reported, walking back to the waiting group and scratching the back of his head. He ignored Ino's exclamation of "Oho! So it's just 'Temari' now, is it?" and shrugged lazily. "Who knows where they could have gone?"_

"_Should we wait here until they come back?" Choji asked while pulling out a bag of chips from his bag, ready to squat on the doormat._

"_ARGH! Why do we have to wait around so much?" Naruto complained furiously, "I say we find Tenten now!"_

"_I agree!" the green spandex-clad teen exclaimed from behind Naruto. He straightened up, puffing his chest out, "I suggest we make this a contest! Whoever finds Tenten first-"_

"_You're on, Bushy-brow!" the hyper blonde ninja replied enthusiastically, pumping his fist in the air and readying his stance to match Lee's as they prepared to sprint away._

"_HOLD IT!" Ino screeched, making the boys wince. She turned to face Hyuuga. "What do you think we should do, Neji?"_

_The white-eyed prodigy had been strangely silent since the crack of dawn, when they had woken up to continue their travel to Sunagakure. It seemed he had a lot on his mind and his companions secretly worried behind his back whether or not he was starting to regret his impulsive decision and was reverting back to the old, cold Neji._

_Their worries were in vain._

"_Let's look for her now."_

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-/-/-/-

.

Tenten couldn't believe her eyes. They were trying to kill each other. In front of her.

At the moment they were at a standstill. Gaara stood on the left side of the clearing, his arms crossed relaxedly but his eyes flashing with something like growing irritation. Neji stood to the left, standing still as a statue but his mind was wandering, Tenten could tell. He was trying calculate the battle stratagems in his head but there was something distracting him. Tenten bit her lip, both worried and guilty as she felt that it was her fault her usually flawless teammate was failing. He was wavering. In his state, Tenten was sure that even _she _could beat him if she tried. Still, he somehow managed to snap out of his thoughts in time to avoid Gaara's hits. That was really saying something.

Both of them were hardly breathing, and as coolly as they were standing, Tenten thought that they looked completely ragged: clothes and hair mussed, sand and dirt here and there. She was so furious with them that her eyes began watering with not sappy-sad-emotional, but angry tears.

The reason why she could not put a stop to their foolishness was because one of them-Tenten was not sure which at the moment- but one of them was using the stupid old Kanashibari no Jutsu* on her. She remembered idly how many times her peers used it on one another during their genin days as a childish prank. This, however, was no prank. Tenten was bitterly aware that both Neji and Gaara's strength and skill outmatched her by far, which meant that there was a very, very slim chance of her breaking the jutsu.

Her constant pleas for peace went unheard and her throat was raw with her shouting. She couldn't believe how much they were ignoring her from her spot beside a large wall of rock, safely in the sidelines, despite the fact that it was _she _they were fighting over in the first place.

And as much as she didn't want to admit it, Gaara was far too strong. He was just on another level. He was friggin' Kazekage for Kami's sake! His shield of sand seemed to have grown stronger with him; it was faster and seemed to be less easy to penetrate than it used to be (or at least, in Tenten's mind it was, considering what she had heard from Lee). Also, Neji's style of fighting was just way _too different_. In fact, Tenten was absolutely sure that it was SHE who had the proper battling style and technique for a strong defense-partial opponent like Gaara... Not that she actually had the skill to beat him, sadly. But Tenten had always been used for breaking down barriers and defenses, and she had a knack for doing so albeit at long range. Neji, on the other hand, was perfect in this match on the basis that he fought close-range, but his attacks were just... unsuited.

Tenten cleared her head free from battle stratagems and refocused on the scene before her drearily. They had started once more; Tenten watched as Gaara's wall of impenetrable sand loomed over him, successfully shielding him from another attack. She was just about to begin another set of "please stop"s and "will you two listen to me"s when Neji's sudden stance stopped her.

He was going to do his Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms.

Tenten's heart almost stopped beating. Was he really trying to kill Gaara? She swiveled her head to the guy in question and was sure that her heart DID stop, if only for a second. His face did not look very tolerant anymore. In fact, he looked ready to retaliate with an even brutish force.

"Please..." her voice was just a shaky whisper now, but she was unaware of this, "please stop..."

Neji's attack didn't hit. They were taunting each other; hands drawn, eyes cold, hearts cold. They couldn't hear her.

"Listen to me!" Once again, it came out as a shaky, bellowed whisper. Tenten couldn't understand why her voice was failing her, why it was so weak.

There was some mirthless laughing, but Tenten couldn't see who it was; she couldn't see anymore; everything was blurry. She wondered why.

Neji struck a nerve with a comment. Gaara looked murderous. Tenten still could not see. She didn't realize that she was crying until she blinked and her tears fell to her cheeks, somewhat clearing her vision.

"Let's see how you like this," the Kazekage ground out through gritted teeth, seeing red for the first time in a long time. His hand seals caused Tenten to cry harder and she tried, with all her might, to scream out to them.

"PLEASE-"

"Sand Binding Coffin!"

"-STOP!"

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-/-/-/-

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_His scent enthralled her; sand and sweat and something uniquely Gaara, like desert blossoms and the sun. She could smell him as he lowered his head slowly to her lips, his hand clutching her own to his heart._

"_TENTEN!"_

_The moment was broken and they turned to look at the intruder. "Neji!"_

_She had wanted it. She can admit it later, inside the peace of her own mind. She had wanted Gaara to kiss her, and she had wanted to kiss him back._

_But Neji-_

_The look on his face was enough to shame her to eternity. But why, her rational mind argued against her deflating heart, why would he care? How many years have you two had each other, with only heartbreak on your part? How many times did he refuse your offers to "hang out" or to be your escort to a party? How many tears have you cried every time he rejected you? Didn't you prove it to yourself already?- Neji Hyuuga IS NOT INTERESTED IN YOU._

_AND HE NEVER WILL BE._

_That was the mantra she had been repeating to herself for the past two years._

_But why was he standing there, by himself, looking so beyond hurt and betrayed?_

"_What's going on?" Neji asked with disbelief, though it was quite obvious to the plain observer. _

_Gaara spoke for her, as she couldn't seem to find her voice anyway. "What does it look like?"_

_There were no more words to say._

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-/-/-/-

.

He seemed to wake up to the sound of her voice.

He dropped his hands and he dropped his head in a show of remorse for what he almost did.

And Neji fell to the ground with the sand, gasping and coughing for air, while Gaara, with a wave of his hand, released the chakra strings he had placed on Tenten to keep her safe.

His blue-green eyes were sorrowful as they met hers, and she averted her gaze, ready to run to Neji's side, where she knew she belonged, where she had always been-

"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!"

It was a last desperate attempt.

Tenten had many theories as to why what happened next happened as it did, but surprisingly: Neji hit.

And he had aimed to kill.

Just in time for all their friends to see.

Gaara was knocked off his feet, his shield of sand kicking in after the delayed reaction to shield his back before it hit the solid earth. He looked winded, clutching the side of his stomach, wincing.

Lee, Naruto, Ino, Choji, and Shikamaru stopped dead in their tracks at what they had just seen as Tenten rushed to the much-more-injured Kazekage, who seemed to be in serious pain.

Was it because he hadn't been paying attention that Neji's attack hit? Was it because of his remorse? Did the heavy guilt prevent his shield from kicking in?

Tenten didn't know the answer to any of the questions floating around in her head, nor did she care about the sudden arrival of her friends as she knelt down next to Gaara, who currently seemed to be unable to move from his sitting position.

Neji, looking-battle worn but otherwise physically unhurt, stood impassively away from everyone else. There was disbelief in his eyes as he watched her.

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-/-/-/-

.

_He had been found lying on the rooftop of a tavern by a certain green-clad boy and got up sheepishly, rubbing his back from the hard, clay earth and reluctantly following his comrade down to the streets below to continue their "search contest."_

"_Is there any point to this 'contest' anyway?"_

_Lee looked offended. "What do you mean?"_

_Shikamaru scratched his head and sighed, looking up at the sky to watch the clouds drift slowly by. The sun was almost setting._

"_I mean, Neji has the Byakugan, right? Of course he'll find Tenten first-"_

"_NO!" Lee shouted, covering his ears and surprising Shikamaru. "Just because Neji has the Byakugan, it doesn't make him better! Just because Neji can do ninjutsu, it doesn't make him stronger!"_

_He had touched a nerve._

"_Sorry," the lazy jounin offered, hastily backtracking, "I just meant, uh, wouldn't it be better if Neji found Tenten first anyway?"_

_Lee dropped his hands and frowned in confusion. "I do not understand."_

_Shikamaru heaved another sigh, "What I mean is-"_

"_THERE YOU ARE!"_

_Both males turned to see one angry kunoichi towing along their two other companions._

_Ino immediately rounded on Shikamaru, "I've been looking EVERYWHERE for you!"_

_Shikamaru bit back a smart reply- as if she really had been looking everywhere, then why had she not found him?- and gave her a lazy grin instead. "I was with Lee," he said, too used to his teammate's exaggerations._

_Naruto wrestled his arm free from the blonde girl's grip and pouted sulkily. "Are you guys planning to let Neji find Tenten first too?"_

_Ino answered the Nara's questioning gaze as she released a compliant Choji, "I rounded them up and convinced them it was better this way."_

_Naruto scowled darkly at her. "More like forced," he mumbled under his breath, adding in a curse about girls and their supposed 'sense-of-romance,' as Ino had called it._

_Shikamaru smirked. He swore his way of thinking was rubbing off on Ino sometimes. Not that he would ever mention that to her out loud, of course._

_The purpose of the idea seemed to finally dawn on Lee as they made their way through Sunagakure._

_._

_They had been sitting idly in an empty alleyway for all of five minutes when Naruto's impatience kicked in. "Come onnnn," he whined, "it's been long enough! Let's go find them!"_

_His incessant whining eventually forced them off their perches and they began their slow walk to the village square when a tall cyclone of sand, rising above the sand dunes and village buildings, caught their attention. It seemed to be happening from afar, out of the borders of the village._

"_Hey!" Naruto exclaimed, his eyes shining with recognition, "That's one of Gaara's attacks!"_

_He completely missed the dark looks exchanged between his companions when they suddenly rushed past him in the direction of the cyclone._

"_W-wait for me!"_

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-/-/-/-

.

He was coughing blood.

All of a sudden, her friends were around them. "Let's get him to a medic, quick," Shikamaru said, taking one of Gaara's arms and hoisting him up while Naruto took the other side. They left quickly for the village, Choji following their trail.

Lee and Ino remained; Lee because he was concerned for his two teammates, and Ino because... well... she's Ino.

The silence was so tense; Neji on one side, Tenten on the other. It was a fairly small little clearing between slabs of gigantic rock but it seemed as if there was a steel wall between them, fifty miles wide.

Tenten wouldn't meet his gaze, and after a long time, Neji was forced to break the silence first.

"Tenten."

She ignored him, but made a little noise in the back of her throat as if to clear it.

"Tenten, let's go."

It was the wrong thing to say. Her head snapped up so fast to glare at him with such indignation. Her fists were balled against her sides and she was almost shaking in fury. "Is that all you can say?"

Neji was instantly on the defensive. Why was everyone attacking him today?

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-/-/-/-

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_"N-neji, what are you doing here?" her voice sounded breathless to his ears._

_He seemed frozen on the spot, as if unwilling to believe that the newly-realized-girl-of-his-dreams had just been about to kiss another man. But then his eyes steeled with raw anger as he grabbed Tenten's wrist and pulled her away from Gaara._

"_Let's go," he said._

_He was prepared to tie her up and carry her all the way back to Konoha if needed. _

_Gaara blocked his way, meeting his eyes with equal intensity._

"_Let her decide."_

_Tenten shifted uncomfortably between them. She couldn't understand why Neji was so angry. Especially since SHE should be the angry one, considering he had left her to go on a solo-mission without saying goodbye and thus breaking a long-standing tradition between the two of them. Not to mention the days before that, when he was forcing her to undergo continuous hardcore training sessions with him, then hugging her, then dumping her on the street, and then later dumping her again on the floor of her own house._

_There was no reason why he should be so mad, and her so guilty... right?_

_And just exactly what was he doing in Suna in the first place?_

_Tenten bit her lip and imagined the mantra she had become so familiar with in her head. 'Neji Hyuuga is not interested in you and he never will be.'_

_She did not like the hope that was blossoming in her chest. It wouldn't be the first time; every hope that Tenten had had in the past always met the same dreary end where the Hyuuga was concerned._

"_Neji, I'll be back..." she said unsurely, avoiding his gaze, "I'm just visiting for a little while... I'll go back to Konoha..."_

_She didn't know why, but she couldn't bring herself to look at the Kazekage either._

"_Then why not go back now?" the prodigy insisted. He sounded impatient with her and Tenten felt something akin to annoyance with her teammate. She swung he head up, ready to give him a piece of her mind when she saw his gaze._

_His eyes were blazing; with emotions so strong that it looked as if he was having a hard time keeping it bottled up inside him. It was as if he wanted to convey some sort of message to her- but for some reason, he could not say the words._

'_Neji Hyuuga is not interested in you and he never will be,' Tenten told herself, looking away, 'Neji Hyuuga is not interested in you and he never will be. Never. Never.'_

_She couldn't bear to be heartbroken anymore. "Neji, I'll come back when I'm ready and when I want to," she told him stubbornly. Gaara immediately went to her side._

"_She's chosen. Leave."_

_Tenten caught a glimpse of what seemed like devastation and desperation in Neji's eyes before his cold, emotionless mask came back in its place. He changed tactics._

"_I think I know what's best for Tenten, and I can say that it is not you."_

_Tenten gasped. How dare he! She glared at Neji's uncharacteristic rudeness and opened her mouth to defend Gaara when he beat her to it. His eyes were hard and unblinking at the Hyuuga._

"_I think you had your chance."_

_Caught slightly off-guard, Neji scowled. "I don't know what you're talking about," he lied darkly._

_Gaara gave him a humorless smirk. "No. You know exactly what I'm talking about."_

_Neji glanced at Tenten, who was squirming with nothing to say. He tightened his grip on her wrist and pulled her along in his wake, ignoring the village people who had come to stop and stare._

_Tenten stumbled after him. "W-wait- Neji!"_

_Suddenly, Neji found himself staring at a tall wall of sand. He turned his head to look back at Gaara who was calmly walking over to them._

"_These are my lands, and here Tenten is my guest. If she does not wish to go with you then we may have to settle this a different way."_

_It was a challenge, and Neji knew it. While he knew that the Kazekage had power that were way beyond his own, Neji was confident in his skill. There was no way he was going to back down._

_He released his grip on Tenten and faced his opponent._

"_Lead the way."_

.

-/-/-/-

.

"What else did you want me to say?" he asked snidely, hurt, angry, betrayed, annoyed, and every other negative feeling, it seemed.

Tenten shook her head, baffled. "Aren't you even a little ashamed of yourself?" she asked angrily, though there was fear in her heart. Neji was acting very much like the merciless little boy that had been placed into her team a long time ago: cold, ruthless, with a sadistic pleasure in beating their other teammate, Lee, into the ground. This was not the Neji she respected. This was not the Neji she had gotten to know. This was not the Neji she fell hopelessly in love with. This was not her best friend. "What were you trying to do, _kill him_?"

He didn't respond. Instead, he turned around and left, vanishing into the rapidly disappearing Suna sun.

There was a tight feeling in her chest as Tenten's vision blurred. She wiped her eyes quickly, surprised to realize that her cheeks were still wet from her earlier tears; she had still been crying.

"Tenten..."

Tenten turned to find that Lee and Ino had witnessed the entire embarrassing scene. She had almost forgotten that they had stayed behind with her. There was concern on both of their faces and despite the situation, Tenten couldn't help but feel grateful for her friends. She managed to give them a smile, though an unconvincing one at that. But a smile, nonetheless.

"I'm not sure what Neji was so angry about," she said, noting the not-very-subtle glance her two friends shared before continuing, "but don't worry about us. We'll make up soon, we always do."

"I am sure you are right Tenten," Lee assured her immediately, wrapping an arm around her shoulders in a gesture of brotherly comfort. "Neji just needs to be alone right now."

The blond girl, who had been oddly silent up until now, nodded her head vigorously. "Yeah! And as you said, Tennie, you guys'll make up soon!"

Tenten's smile brightened, if only a little bit. "Yeah..."

As they made their way back to the village to see Gaara, Tenten wished with all her heart that she was right.

.

As it turned out, Gaara was a fast healer. He was up on his feet again in a mere day and looked sincerely pleased with the arrival of Naruto and the others (the same can't be said for Neji, unfortunately). Tenten was amused and surprised to learn of the hyperactive blond ninja's close friendship with the stoic Kazekage. It seemed like such an odd, mismatched, once-in-a-lifetime kind of friendship that it warmed her heart to see them interacting with one another.

There was much mystery regarding her friends' sudden appearance in Suna, and after much eye-avoiding, mumbling, and exchanged-glances, they assured Tenten that it was because they missed her, had nothing better to do in Konoha anyway, and somehow persuaded the Lady Hokage to allow them to visit her.

To say the least, Tenten wasn't convinced. She had a suspicion that there was more to the story than they let on. However, she decided to let it be for the moment. She wasn't sure she could handle anymore surprises after the first.

It was after dinnertime and Naruto, Lee (who had also seemed to have develop a rather close friendship with the Kazekage), and Tenten sat around Gaara's office talking about nothings and just catching up with each other. In fact, everyone seemed to be determined to pretend that the battle that had happened the day before had never happened at all. They were all very grateful for this; Konoha couldn't afford to break the alliance with Sunagakure and they were lucky that there hadn't been any official witnesses to the battle than those who were directly involved.

Team 10 had all somehow managed to excuse themselves after dinner and mysteriously vanished not long afterwards. Shikamaru explained that he still owed a seething Temari an "explanation" for her injured brother while Choji offered to accompany him for "moral support." A little while later Ino had also excused herself, saying that she needed to "check up on her boys" and that she should help them out if Kankuro somehow entered the scene, as "a woman's words come in softer through a man's ears."

Naruto had given an over-exaggerated eye roll at that.

But it didn't take a genius to know where they actually were. Even if they had done what they said they were going to do (after all, Temari had been positively raging the other day), there could be no other explanation as to why it was taking so long. They had not been spotted for four hours. It was pretty obvious that they went to find Neji, in Tenten's opinion.

As she made herself more comfortable in her seat next to the warmth of the glowing fire, she tuned out Lee and Naruto's loud re-telling of their adventures and let her mind wander, vaguely wondering what Neji was doing at the current moment.

.

Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji ran through the woods.

They had been running at full speed for a few hours now, just having reached the terrain change from desert to woodlands. Neji couldn't have gotten far- after all, he was not one to give up easily, and Tenten was still in Suna.

They weaved through the trees in silence and it was another hour and a half before Shikamaru signaled for his team to slow down. "I sense him nearby."

He was a lonely figure in the darkness, surrounded by broken trees. A sad man, feeling his first heartbreak. It was a painful sight to behold.

The trio landed a short way away from where he stood, and Neji twitched his arm in acknowledgment of their presence but didn't turn to face them. Team 10 had all the tact, it seems, as they knew better than to force the Hyuuga to talk until he was ready. They sat under a large oak tree, their shoulders pressed against each other like three peas in a pod. It was a cold night, and the foolishly-dressed female of their team always had the honor of sitting in the middle whenever they sat like this. Sitting very close together, side-by-side, always warmed them up.

Nobody spoke for a long, long time. Ino was just about ready to fall asleep on Choji's right shoulder when Neji finally said something.

"I don't understand."

There was a collective sigh from Team 10 and Neji glared at them. Three apologetic faces stared back at him- there were drawbacks to hanging out with the same people all the time; eventually, you started to acquire their habits.

Thankfully he ignored them and plowed on. "I was sure- I thought... I was sure that Tenten would come back with us." _With me_, he corrected in his mind.

The three teammates exchanged glances. _Tenten said no to Neji?_ There had to be a catch, they knew, as they had also been pretty sure that Tenten would have come back home if Neji had just asked-

If Tenten wasn't the problem, then it had to be Neji.

The missing piece was rapidly floating up in their heads. Nevertheless, Shikamaru's brain seemed to piece it all together faster.

He frowned thoughtfully at the Hyuuga. "Neji- let me ask you this. Why did you think she would come back with us to Konoha when she came here for her vacation?"

Neji's response was immediate. "Because I've known her longer. Because I'm her best friend."

"Well, I've known Ino longer, and I'm also her best friend," Shikamaru said, glancing at the blonde who smiled back at him, confirming his statement, "but I'm pretty sure that she wouldn't come home if she were offered a vacation in Suna by Kankuro or Gaara, just because I asked her to, would you Ino?"

"Nope. Not unless it was a real emergency!" the blonde chirped, catching on to Shikamaru's trail of thought.

Neji knew that there was some kind of insidious plot going on between the Nara and the Yamanaka (the Akimichi seemed to still be in the process of cottoning on), but nevertheless he bit his tongue and decided to disregard it for the time being.

"Tenten might get married to that... that..." he seemed unable to finish his sentence as fury welled up inside him, a mental image of his Tenten and Gaara almost kissing burned in his memory. He closed his eyes for a moment to calm himself. "I think that can be constituted as an emergency."

"Why?" Choji asked. He seemed to have finally boarded the same mental-train-of-thought as his two teammates.

"Gaara is a heartless bastard. He is not right for Tenten."

"I don't know," Ino said slowly and carefully, making sure she wasn't about to blow up the Hyuuga, "Gaara's really loosened up lately... His face is more relaxed and he actually smiles quite often now... Or well, at least more than before, which was never. He's actually really kind of cute when you take a good look at him, you know. And I hear he's been giving Tennie the royal treatment-"

"He can't make her happy," Neji said through gritted teeth, "I know Tenten."

"She looked pretty happy to me," Shikamaru said, thinking back to a few hours earlier. No one had missed the new chemistry between their Weapon's Mistress and the Kazekage as they interacted. It seemed as if they had really warmed up to each other. Everyone hid their surprise well, even Naruto, thankfully. Or maybe Naruto already knew about the hidden soft side of the Kazekage, which was why he didn't seem all too affected with the budding attraction between his two friends. Then again, maybe Naruto hadn't seen it at all. The guy could be pretty oblivious sometimes.

"I''ll say," added Ino absently, her thoughts taking her back to how Tenten had hugged red-haired sand nin with relief upon his waking and how comfortable they seemed to be with each other's touch. She would have never thought it possible for someone like Gaara. "You know, maybe it isn't impossible at all."

The three males looked at her as if she had gone crazy. Neji looked angry, Choji and Shikamaru were giving her warning looks.

Ino ignored them and continued, flipping her long, blonde hair. "Like Shizune said, it's a long time coming for the both of them. For, like, once in her life, Tennie deserves to be loved-"

Neji's voice was incredulous at best. He scoffed. "And you think that Gaara-?"

"YES!" the blonde interrupted, standing up. She ignored her frantic teammates whispering for her to shut up and took a step towards the Hyuuga. She sensed her boys do the same, if only to save her from an early death. "Considering Gaara's past, I think it's safe to say that he and Tennie are in the same boat! Orphans! They've never had anyone fawn over them or care for them; I'm actually thinking it would be a very good match."

If looks could kill, Ino would have been dead ten times over. She pretended to be none the wiser and bravely charged on with her speech. "No one has ever been there to love them! They practically had to raise themselves! I'm sure that this similarity can actually develop into a stronger bond that will finally give them both something that they've been needing for a very long time."

Shikamaru slapped a hand to his face. "For the love of God, Ino, shut-"

"I MEAN, WHO ELSE BETTER," Ino continued, her voice rising to a shout in order to drown out the voices of her anxious teammates, "TO UNDERSTAND THE FEELINGS OF AN ORPHAN THAN ANOTHER ORPHAN? WHO ELSE WILL LOVE THEM IF THEY DON'T LOVE EACH OTHER? WHO ELSE WILL LOVE TENNIE THAN ANOTHER ONE OF HER KIND-"

"ME! I LOVE TENTEN!"

The silence that followed was one of the loudest Shikamaru had ever heard in his life. Ino had gotten her desired effect, but Neji's death glare and seething rage were an unwelcome bonus. The blonde shrunk back to hide behind Choji. The things she did for her friends! Ino thought, shivering from the chills of fear she felt from Neji's murderous look.

He had finally admitted it. To three people. None of whom were Tenten.

Shikamaru scratched the back of his head. It wasn't the approach he had in mind, but it didn't matter; Ino's taunt-mercilessly-then-hide-behind-Choji technique seemed to have worked fine also. "Um... Have you told Tenten this?"

The white-eyed prodigy, taunted to breaking point, seemed shocked by his own public admission. He shook his head slowly, as if in a daze. "No."

"Neji, I really think that you should tell Tenten how you feel," said Choji.

Neji shook his head, his anger waning. A desperate sort of look flashed briefly in his eyes. "What if she doesn't like me back?" the nature of the question seemed so uncharacteristic on his tongue that Neji cringed.

The collective sigh from Team 10 caused nearby birds to soar away into the sky. Once again, an irate Neji glared at them.

Ino and Choji looked at Shikamaru uncertainly, and their silent question reached his quick mind: _Should we tell Neji?_

Shikamaru thrust his hands deep into his pockets and surveyed the Hyuuga seriously. "How will you know if you never try?"

Neji contemplated his words for a very long time before sighing himself and sitting down at the base of an old tree. It seemed that emotions were exhausting the Hyuuga.

"I will try to speak with her tomorrow."

In his sorrow, he couldn't help but add to his thoughts, _Hopefully, she will still want to speak with me._

_._

_-/-/-/-_

_. End Chapter 9._

_._

* * *

* _Kanashibari no Jutsu, also known as the temporary paralysis technique in the Naruto-universe._

_..._

Well, you guys are going to** HATE** me, but I admit it: _I forgot about this story completely_. So many things have happened and changed in my life in the past five months and I am still trying to adjust.

I must thank **Resees Choco** for reviewing, and reminding me that yes, this story is stil alive. I was pretty surprised to find the review in my inbox!

And I know that this chapter was rather melancholy. But on the bright side, the story has finally reached its climax! The next chapter will sort of be a continuation to this one, and while it may still be sort of dreary, at least it will be considerably lighter and happier. I promise, the fluff shall return soon! c:

As always, your reviews are _much appreciated_ (if only to serve as a reminder! I'm quite forgetful, as you may have all realized).

Always, Kikushi.

_._


	10. Kisses

See? Reviews do help!

Don't worry, folks... this story is still alive...

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Also, apologies for the shortness of this chapter, but I wanted to save the next part for later instead of making this one big run-on.

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* * *

**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

.

Lee and Naruto bid him goodnight and Gaara watched as they were escorted out of his office by one of his personal attendants. They would be staying in one of the guest rooms of the building for the night and had told him that they planned on leaving early the next morning.

Gaara's blue-green eyes found the sleeping form of Tenten, curled up on the armchair. Her legs were tucked under her, and her arms folded on the right armrest to make a cradle for her head. Gaara simply stared at her for a moment in deep-thought, trying to envision how the scene would be different if Tenten was his wife. The glow of the fire struck the sleeping beauty with ethereal light. There was something so innocent about her… so precious. Her face was half-obscured by hair that had fallen out from her buns during her sleep and Gaara ached to push them away.

He stood abruptly and kneeled slowly in front of her, leveling his face with hers. Gently, he brushed a stray lock of chocolate-brown hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. He had gotten to know a lot about Tenten over the past few days. It seemed that she had a habit of rambling about her life whenever she got nervous or distracted.

She sighed in her sleep, breaking the Kazekage's vague flow of thoughts. He wondered for a second what it was she was dreaming about, when his eyes were drawn to her pink, slightly-parted lips. He had been close to tasting them, and Gaara felt a brief pang of loss and annoyance for the white-eyed Hyuuga as he thought back to the events of a distant yesterday. Although he resented the prodigy as competition for Tenten, he held no ill-will toward the Hyuuga's low blow. In fact, he had seen it coming; he just assumed his sand shield would immediately activate, as it always did. He puzzled over as to why it left him defenseless in the face of danger when Tenten sighed once more, effectively distracting him again.

In the back of Gaara's mind, he remembered telling Lee and Naruto just before they retired that he would wake Tenten and personally escort her to her own room. But now, looking at the peacefully sleeping girl before him, Gaara felt no inclination to do such a thing. Instead, he rose slowly to his feet and with much patience and care, gathered Tenten into his arms, letting her head rest upon his right shoulder. He ignored the soreness coming from his abdomen and proceeded out of his office into the dimly lit hallway. He savored the warmth of her body in such close proximity to his own and was pleased when she unconsciously snuggled closer to him. The comfortable walk was over far too quickly, in Gaara's opinion. He soon found himself slowly lowering Tenten onto her bed and pulling up the covers over her body. He was about to leave when a sudden thought occurred to him.

For the way he handled recent events, didn't he at least deserve a prize?

He leaned over Tenten hesitantly, watching for signs of waking. When she continued to sleep peacefully, Gaara let a rare, genuine smile form on his lips. He had to admit, he had grown fond of the little kunoichi.

Without another thought, he ducked his head and pressed his lips upon hers firmly, praying to whatever gods that she would someday choose to belong to him.

.

.

It was both very late in the night and very early the next day. Tenten rubbed her eyes and found herself peering into the darkness of her guest bedroom.

_How did I get here again? _she thought, rubbing her eyes and struggling to sit up.

She'd been with Naruto and Lee in Gaara's office, talking about their past missions together and recent accomplishments… She'd been thinking about Team Ten, how they had gone after Neji…

Tenten gasped, suddenly wide awake. _Did I fall asleep in the middle of the conversation? But then, who…?_

Even as Tenten wondered, she immediately imagined red hair and strong arms cradling her against a hard chest. The scent of sand and sun and something just uniquely Gaara still lingered about her. Tenten blushed.

Pulling the covers off of her body, she got out of bed and stretched, noticing that she still had— thankfully— her normal attire on. She knew that sleep would not come easily now that she was awake. Straggling over to the window, Tenten peered up at the dark sky, trying to spot the stars. It was a calm and still night. Perhaps a little walk would soothe her.

.

Neji Hyuuga blinked, his eyes straining to see in the darkness. He fought the urge to activate his Byakugan as his eyes focused intently on the lone figure wandering the streets.

He had just returned to Suna with Team Ten, and the three had exhaustedly collapsed in their rented bedrooms at the local inn. After much indecision and pacing about, Shikamaru had suggested that they return to the village despite the lateness of the night, much to the relief of the Hyuuga. They deserved to rest after putting up with him so much. Neji, however, just could not find the desire to sleep and opted instead to wander around the Sand village in hopes of clearing away his muddied thoughts. If he had to guess at the time, he figured it was probably around three in the morning. And yet…

Could it really be _her_? There was only one way to find out.

Ducking out from the shadows of the alleyway he had been hiding in— his instinctual response upon feeling the presence of another person— Neji stepped out into the moonlight and cleared his throat softly. "Tenten?"

The figure whirled around and gasped at the sound of his voice. He watched as she braved a step towards him, trying to find his face in the darkness.

"Neji? Is that you?"

Neji was filled with mixed emotions at the sound of her voice. He hadn't been wrong after all; it was her… He immediately felt doubt and anxiety creeping through him as he extended a hand to her. It was now or never, he thought nervously. But what if she refused him still? What if she was still angry enough to not want to talk to him?

Tenten hesitated slightly, looking down at the hand he was extending to her. What did it mean? She hadn't forgotten their little fallout from earlier and she briefly debated the meaning of the gesture. Was Neji silently asking her to come back home with him again? She silently bristled at the thought of this— the nerve of him! But then perhaps he was just offering her a handshake as a peace offering? She looked up to meet his eyes, but she couldn't see his face enough in the darkness to gauge his expression. Biting her lip, Tenten brought up her hand slowly and placed it gently in his palm.

As though the contact had been a trigger, Neji's hand tightened like steel around her own and Tenten gasped as she was pulled forward roughly, falling into a hard chest. Her heartbeat accelerated and she tensed when she felt his arms go around her, binding her body tightly to his.

"_N-Neji_..!"

"Tenten," he whispered into her hair, his voice sounding strained, "I'm sorry…"

She whipped up her head to look at him, her eyes wide with confusion, her spirits soaring with something like hope. "Neji… I don't und—"

She gasped in mid-sentence as he brought down his head swiftly, crashing his lips into her own. Tenten froze, stunned with disbelief and confusion. She felt Neji's mouth moving desperately against her lips, his warm breath sending her heart into a frenzy. Her eyes fluttered closed against her will as emotions overpowered all logic and she relaxed, bringing up her hands to rest upon his chest. Neji felt her melting against him and held her closer, his mouth opening slightly, trying to coax a response. The moment she kissed him back, Neji's tongue darted between her unsuspecting lips, successfully opening her mouth to him. Tenten moaned and tilted her head back further. It was the kind of kiss she had always dreamed about with Neji. She felt his hands loosening its grip on her waist as it travelled upwards her body, sending shivers up her spine, until he was cupping her face between his large palms. He was positively devouring her. Tenten trembled as he flicked his tongue against her own and moaned into his mouth. Her mind was screaming for air, but she didn't dare break the moment.

Eventually, even the Hyuuga needed to breathe and it was with great reluctance that he pulled away from her. His arms immediately wrapped around her waist, as if afraid she'd leave him. Tenten, however, could barely move from her spot. She could feel his quick heartbeat under her hands as they stood there, trying to reclaim their breaths. Tenten's mind was spinning a mile a minute. She was slightly dizzy from the effects of their kissing, but she struggled to bring words to her mouth. "What… what are we doing, Neji?"

She looked up at him with wide eyes, hope brimming in every inch of her being. Neji's eyes travelled downwards from her over-bright liquid chocolate orbs to her kiss-swollen lips. His only response was to lower his head once more to taste them.

"M-mou! Neji!" Tenten tried to speak against his lips, blushing furiously. She was trying her hardest not to melt into a gooey lovestruck puddle before him, but it was proving to be very difficult as he insisted on trying to make out with her in the open streets of Suna… and during the middle of the night, no less.

Tenten brought up her hands to cup his face and Neji stiffened as she pulled him gently away from her. "Please…" she whispered to him, her chocolate brown eyes pleading desperately, "…please tell me what this is…"

He stepped away from her, suddenly looking somber. "What do you think it is, Tenten?" he asked softly, his gaze measured.

Tenten bit her lip, her heart clenching in her chest painfully. She had a good guess as to what it was, but she was afraid… Afraid to assume, afraid to hope… She needed to hear him say it with her own ears. Why couldn't he just tell her straight out, dammit!

"I-I… I'm not sure…" she stuttered, focusing her gaze on the ground beneath her feet. "Do you… do you not want me to marry Gaara, then?"

She had meant to ask, _Do you like me?_ but something in her had morphed her words differently. She was too damn scared, Tenten realized. What if it wasn't as she thought it was? What if Neji laughed at her? She had to remind herself that Neji Hyuuga had not shown any interest in her whatsoever in all the many years she had known him. It just seemed way too good to be true! In truth, she hadn't even been thinking about marriage recently. Tenten prayed that Neji would understand the real hidden meaning behind her strangely-phrased question.

"No, I don't," said Neji flatly, his face turning dark. Tenten's heart fluttered crazily.

"Then—?" she began hopefully, but Neji wasn't finished. It seemed that the mere name of the Kazekage was enough to ignite a deep rage within the white-eyed prodigy. All traces of softness had gone from him eyes, and there now resided an unrestrained fury.

"Tenten, if you really wanted to get married, why didn't you tell me?" he asked through gritted teeth. Taken aback, Tenten could do no more than stare at him, open-mouthed. The magic of the moment had gone.

"What are you—?" she tried to ask, hurt. She couldn't understand why he was suddenly so angry.

"I'd marry you, Tenten… so— so stop seeing that bastard!" Neji seethed, his naturally expressionless face etched in uncharacteristic anger. Tenten stumbled backwards, a hand flying to her mouth in shock.

"_Neji_," she breathed, " _Are you proposing to me?_" Her voice was unnaturally high, and her head was swimming dizzyingly with a thousand thoughts. She knew that if he said anymore, it was likely that she might faint. "B-but… but _why_? Neji, _why so suddenly?_"

She needed to hear it, no matter what. Tenten watched as the love of her life struggled with himself while she tried to compose her rapid heartbeat. Just those three words… She knew that if he said them to her now, she would be his. Forever.

"Because… I..."

Tenten held her breath. _I can't believe it_, she thought, clenching her hands tightly in nervous anticipation, _He's finally going to say it to me…_

"I…"

Neji closed his eyes painfully. Why couldn't he say it? Why was it so hard?

"Because… I've known you longer."

Tenten froze. _What? _

Her happiness burst into a million fragments; never to be seen again. She began to feel hollow and numb… she didn't want to hear this… she didn't want to hear anything...

But Neji plowed on with his speech, "Wouldn't it be better to marry me instead, Tenten? We've know each other longer, and you barely know that guy!"

He was silently tearing her apart without knowing, and Tenten could feel herself reverting back into the cool facade she wore whenever she was deeply hurt. Better to be angry than vulnerable; it was the code she lived by.

"And exactly _why_ should you even care if we've just met, Hyuga?" Tenten spat back frostily, taking the guy before her by surprise.

Neji's heart fell when he saw Tenten's guarded expression and he immediately knew that he blew it. He could still fix this… He just had to tell her, _dammit_…

"Because…" he began, trying not to panic as the words still refused to come out. "Because you're my best friend and teammate, Tenten. I'm just trying to do what's best for you."

As soon as he said it, Neji inwardly cringed. He was the biggest idiot in the world, and judging by Tenten's face, she thought so too.

"Doing what's _best for me_?" she scoffed, crossing her arms. She tried desperately to hold on to her steely charade, but she knew that she had to get away soon because if she stayed any longer, the tears would start falling from her eyes.

"Neji Hyuga, you don't know what's best for me so don't try to act like you do!"

"Oh? So you'd rather marry that bastard instead of me?" he retorted, his temper flaring inexplicably. Why couldn't she just accept the facts as they were?

"Well I wouldn't want you to _force_ yourself, seeing as you're only doing your duty as a_ friend_ and _teammate_!"

_So that's it,_ Neji thought, softening. He tried a different approach. "Tenten, you're the girl I'm most familiar with. It wouldn't be a burden to marry you."

Tenten's mouth fell open as she gaped at him in open disbelief. "_It wouldn't be a burden?_" she shrieked, offended one time too many. As soon as she'd repeated his words back to him, Neji realized that what he'd said had probably not been the best choice of words.

"Tenten, I didn't mean—" he started, but Tenten cut him off.

Her voice was soft and weary as she spoke."You know what Neji? Maybe you guys should just go back to Konoha."

Neji stilled, his heart clenching painfully. "Tenten—"

She shook her head and turned her back to him, her shoulders sagging as though their little spat had left her thoroughly exhausted. "I'm supposed to be spending my time off with Gaara."

He couldn't believe his ears. His temper was rapidly increasing again, and he was ready to say another scathing remark about her _darling Gaara_, but her tired voice stopped him.

"After all, I really should be getting to know the guy I'm marrying a little better."

The night suddenly became too cold… too silent…. too still….

But Tenten had decided. She couldn't let Neji keep playing her like this. She wasn't some kind of toy that could be broken and fixed over and over again. If she kept letting Neji hurt her this way, Tenten knew that she'd eventually shatter beyond repair.

Neither moved nor spoke for a long, long time. It may have been hours later, for all she knew, but Tenten forced herself to choke out her next words.

"Neji… will you come to the wedding?"

There was no answer.

Tenten allowed herself to turn around, her eyes meeting only empty space. She hadn't heard him leave; she was alone in the night.

Letting out a shaky sigh, Tenten finally let the tears fall from her eyes.

.

.

He watched silently as she straggled inside her dark room, sobbing silently like a spirit defeated. She closed the door soundlessly behind her, only detecting his presence when she was standing a mere foot away from her bed. Startled, Tenten drew away, trying to identify the figure sitting on the mattress in the darkness.

"Who's th— G-Gaara?"

He stood quietly and stepped closer to her. He had heard her leave the building hours ago, as he still could not familiarize himself with the idea of sleep. He had watched her petite form from his window, a lost soul wandering the streets. She had ultimately vanished around a corner where his eyes could follow her no more, and he had been waiting all the while for her return. He guessed that she would be back from her walk within an hour, but when the hours passed by without the weapon's mistress reappearance, he'd become increasingly worried.

But now she was back, safe and unharmed, yet bawling her eyes out.

Gaara shrewdly suspected that it was the doing of one of her… _friends_. The white-eyed one, to be specific.

Tenten quickly rubbed her red eyes free of tears, coughing to relieve her hoarse throat. "Um… what are you doing here?"

Instead of answering, he reached up and brushed away a teardrop still trailing on her cheeks. He cupped her face gently, and felt her tense.

"W-what are you doing?" she whispered frantically. She could only take so much in one night...

A pair of strong, wiry arms suddenly encased her, pulling her forward into a warm, comforting chest. It was an unfamiliar feeling, holding a girl so close in such a manner. Gaara had only a second to revel in her softness before Tenten tried pushing him away. She did not want anymore hugs tonight!

Uncharacteristically, Gaara only tightened his hold on her. He lowered his mouth to her ear, "_I_ can make you happy…"

His words made Tenten go limp in his arms. She looked up at him, trying to read his expression without success. How did he know? Had he been watching?

Gaara's face was its usual stoic mask, but his eyes spoke volumes. "You can be happy here, in Suna…" he said softly.

Tenten fought off the urge to begin crying again. She knew it too— she _could_ be happy in Suna, she _could _be happy sharing her life with Gaara…

But she also knew how she could've been, might've been so much happier…

With Neji.

But he had broken her heart for the last time.

"Gaara," she said, trying to control her trembling voice. She was determined to go through with this.

She'll put Neji behind her once and for all!

"I've been thinking a lot about it… and I… I've decided."

He held her closer, as if subconsciously sensing what conclusion she had come to.

"I've decided… to marry you."

Gaara's eyes widened fractionally in surprise, but let his face relax into its usual expression almost immediately. He said nothing for a moment— just gazed down at her, as though trying to read the cause of her sudden decision. Tenten squirmed uncomfortably under his close scrutiny, but stilled when his face began to lower. She felt his lips fall upon hers and forced herself not to pull away.

She kissed him back gently, convincing herself that it was for the best…

_It's right… It's right… It's right..._

Those two words would become her mantra for the week that followed.

_._

_-/-/-/-_

_. End Chapter 10._

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How was it? Please review!


	11. Help Unwanted

Huff huff huff... writing this chapter was like running a marathon.

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**Could've Been, Might've Been**

**By: Kikushi**

**...**

.

They were facing one another in the worn clearing, pretending not to know each other. Various weapons were scattered about and the sunlight reflected off of each silver steel. The heat of the midday was fast intensifying, and sweat was pooling on the sparring partners' foreheads.

Seven days had flown by since Tenten's Suna vacation, and now she was back in Konoha with her friends. Her engagement with Sunagakure's Kazekage had been broadcasted publicly by the Godaime Hokage herself, and it had come to the point where Tenten began to spend as much time indoors as possible to ward off her spontaneous well-wishers. The wedding was to be held in Suna, and all of her friends who were not in active duty by that day had been invited. To say that Tenten was nervous was putting it simply— the entire occasion was looking to be a very big deal. Of course, it shouldn't have surprised her, considering that she was marrying a _Kage_, for crying out loud. Even so…

The wedding was two days from now.

She'd bleakly protested the urgency of it— after all, what was a month or two?— but as soon as she'd agreed to marry Gaara, he had wasted no time in telling the council members. The council members, of course, saw no point in prolonging the engagement and rushed off to prepare an impromptu wedding. Tenten had been feeling very sick by the fourth day of preparations, after she'd tried on different wedding gowns. Currently, all she wanted to do now was to get it all over with and go to sleep for a very, very long time. Heaven help her if she ever woke up.

Even with all of her frequent well-wishers (mostly Gai, Lee, Sakura, and Ino), there were… non-well-wishers. In fact, there was probably only one person in all of Konoha who had yet to congratulate her_—_ she was facing him right now.

She'd only gotten back from Suna three days ago, and Tenten, after much indecision, had decided to take a risk and show up for early morning training. It was no surprise that she'd found Neji there, waiting for her as though nothing ever happened between them. Although, in a way, nothing really _did_ happen. Much.

They'd sparred silently together and when it was over, they'd both gone their separate ways back home. It had been like that, more or less, for the past three days. Even now…

What hurt Tenten the most was not the silent treatment he was giving her, but_ that look—_ she had not seen it directed towards her since way before the Chunin Exams, when Team Gai had just began. She detested it. She felt as though time flipped back to those days, and all the years she'd spent slowly becoming close friends with Neji had just vanished from the time frame.

But what right did _he_ have to be mad in the first place? In Tenten's opinion,_ she_ was the one who had the right to be mad!

With that in thought, Tenten brandished her large scroll and flung it upwards into the air, sailing after it unfurled and rapid summoning her precious weapons—

Neji moved faster, his Kaiten already in full force by the time any of her weapons could even get near—

On and on they went, sounds of steel clanging against steel and earth and wood echoing throughout the clearing. As the battle wore on, Tenten's mind flew elsewhere.

The entire village of Sunagakure had been invited for the wedding. It was more like a festival, really. Even if Tenten felt like backing out now, there was no way she could possibly do so… Everyone would _hate_ her— and Tenten _loved_ Suna. She absolutely fell in love with the village—

Not to mention, the animosity that might fuel between Konoha and Suna if she were to back out _now _of all times… She had almost no choice but to go along with it. The decision was final. Anything else— worries, regrets, whatever_—_ no longer mattered. She had chosen, and she would live with that choice. Happily.

She was confident that she had made the right decision.

_Yes_, thought Tenten as she dodged a kunai that had been deflected back towards her, _It's right… it's right…_

Her feet touched the ground lightly as she took up another stance, ready to soar up into the air once more—

"TENTEN!"

"WH—!"

A sudden blur of pink, purple, and yellow obscured her view and Tenten felt herself roughly colliding with two bodies as arms and hands shoved her back down towards the ground. A dull thud resonated across the clearing when her back hit the earth.

"What the—!" Tenten exclaimed as she raised her throbbing head, only to find a cheery Ino and Sakura beaming down at her.

Ino helped the weapons mistress up and linked her arm through the disgruntled brunette's. "Sorry, Tennie," said Ino happily, acting as though she hadn't just tackled the other girl bodily to the dusty terrain, "But with you leaving for Suna later, me and Sakura here thought that it wasn't right for you to spend your last day in Konoha _training_."

"That's right!" the blonde's pink-haired accomplice chirped, "Today, we are having a girl's day out_—_ whether you like it or not!"

"Besides," Ino continued, grinning as Tenten's face grew darker and darker with every word she was hearing, "You still need to help us pick out our dresses! Can't hardly show up with dresses that doesn't match the color theme!… Wait. What are your wedding colors again?"

The weapons mistress shifted uncomfortably on the spot. "Uhm… White? I think?"

Sakura glared at her. "Don't tell me you don't even know_ that_!"

"Hey, I'm not the one over there planning it, okay? Suna's council members are!" defended Tenten, glaring back.

"Yeah, yeah," Ino dismissed lazily with a casual wave of her hand, "We forgive you your cluelessness, Sabaku no Tenten-san… So long as you let me bring your bouquet on the day!"

Tenten blushed furiously as she shot the two grinning girls an angry look. "Fine! Whatever!"

"Yay!" the blonde celebrated, high-fiving her best friend, "Say, you don't mind if we steal Tenten from you, do you Ne_—_ Neji?"

The three girls whirled around and found that they were alone in the training grounds.

"I— I guess that means it's okay!" Sakura said, laughing nervously at the suddenly stony look on her friend's face. She linked her arm through Tenten's other one and smiled reassuringly. "Let's go to town, girls!"

.

.

Neji had never felt so hollow in his life. There were people who believed him to be unfeeling and cold, emotionless and guarded. But against that… _that bastard_… wasn't he, Neji, the more 'feeling' one out of the two? Out of all the people who could have stolen Tenten right out from under his nose… he would have never thought it would be _him_. Someone who, Neji was sure, was even more of a "cold, emotion-lacking, social-retard," to put it in Tenten's words, than he was! And yet, she'd gone to _him_. She chose to marry _him_. To be _his _wife.

Why? What did_ that bastard_ have that he didn't?

His anger intensified the more he thought about it. Gaara was nothing more than a ruthless killer, someone who deserved to rot in a cell and yet… he'd been forgiven, as though all the murders he'd committed had been _nothing_, and then he'd been appointed as Kage, where all his people celebrated his return after the Akatsuki abduction and he reunited with his suddenly loving family.

And now… now he even had Tenten to top it all off!

How much more lucky was that bastard going to get?

The worst Neji had ever done was to almost kill his cousin in the Chunin Exams, about six years ago, and that was because of a deep pain he'd harbored from his childhood. He'd never been a murderer like Gaara had been, and yet his relationship with his family was still strained, he was still nothing but a lowly branch-member, forever branded and cursed—!

His one freedom had been Tenten. But now she was gone too… Gone off to marry _him!_

And yet… And _yet_…!

He tightened his grip on the handle of the kunai in his hand. He could not resist taking it from her, even though he was sure that she would notice its absence eventually… He never quite figured out how she always knew if she was missing something from her massive arsenal.

Neji stopped in his tracks, feeling so much and almost nothing at the same time. The girl he'd unwittingly fallen in love with— his best friend for so many years now— was going to get married to another guy. It was a huge blow. It felt as though he had left something behind with her, like she was running away with a piece of him, never to return… Was it not fair to take a piece of her with him too? Even if it was only a single kunai…

"Oi! Neji!"

The familiar voice snapped the Hyuuga prodigy out of his musings and he cringed inwardly as he recognized its owner. Stuffing Tenten's kunai under his sleeve, he turned around slowly, almost mechanically, and repeated to himself that things could not possibly become worse for him.

As he suspected, Naruto Uzumaki was making his way boisterously over to him, Lee following in his wake. The two were wearing almost identical grins and for a second, Neji was briefly reminded of Haruno and the Yamanaka from earlier.

"Neji, my eternal rival! I have been looking everywhere for you!"

"Yeah, yeah, Neji! Boy, are you hard to find or what, dattebayo!"

He watched as the two loudmouths rushed over to where he stood, steeling himself for the inevitable. As his life was already _crap_, why not add more?

Lee reached him first and, shoving his horrifying face up close to his, beamed his sparkling smile and proclaimed loud enough for the entire village to hear, "Neji! You must come with us at once! It is urgent!"

Neji heaved a long-suffering sigh. The two idiots had arrived only five seconds ago, and yet he was already feeling a migraine. "What is it, Lee?" he snapped, already knowing that whatever it was, it couldn't be _that_ urgent. The morons were _smiling_, after all— he wasn't stupid.

"Tenten's gonna leave today right?" Naruto responded instead, his eyes narrowing into a suspicious glare, "Of course, everyone's gathering up to throw her one of those… Uh… Hey, Bushy-brow, what do you call—?"

"It is Tenten's engagement-slash-goodbye-slash-congratulations party!" Lee filled in dutifully. "That is what Sakura-san called it!"

Naruto nodded, satisfied with the answer. "Yeah, yeah! That's what it is!"

Neji scoffed, bringing the attention back to himself. He turned away abruptly and began his miserable way back to the Hyuuga manor. "Not interested," he called behind him.

Naruto and Lee exchanged exasperated glances as they watched the stubborn prodigy walk away. They had known that it wasn't going to be easy…

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

The cry gave him a split second warning before Neji found himself dodging close to a hundred Narutos, all of whom were throwing themselves upon him.

"What the hell, Naruto!" he exclaimed angrily, taking his Kaiten stance. First his training session was cut short, and now he was getting ambushed by his own friends— _Things really did get wors_e, Neji thought sullenly, as his Kaiten was interrupted by Lee's infamous 'Leaf Hurricane.'

"Just come with us, Neji!" Lee bellowed, his rapid kicks missing by a hair.

"Yeah, then we wouldn't have to do this!" the Narutos reasoned, the clones disappearing one after another as Neji punched them away.

Neji rolled his eyes. "Why are you two doing this in the first place?" he hissed. He was about to activate his Byakugan when the ground beneath him began to crack away—

He had a short moment to reflect back on his defeat at the Chunin Exams before jumping up into the air to avoid the attack. "That won't work twice on me!" he snapped. He was growing more and more annoyed with each passing second.

Neji watched the Naruto beneath the ground spring up after him, but he was already twenty feet up into the air—

Suddenly, two hands grabbed him from behind, tight like steel bands, and Neji cursed inwardly, _Shit! Lee! I knew I should have activated the Byakugan—!_

They twisted in midair, and Neji struggled against his friend's death grip as they began to fall upside down_—_ Was Lee seriously going to do this to him?

But then Lee called out from behind him, "Naruto! Now!"

The Narutos called out, "Right!" and Neji watched helplessly as a sea of orange sprung upwards into the air to meet them halfway—

Instead of receiving the blows that he expected, Neji felt one of the Narutos' hands forcing his mouth open while another chucked a round pill into his mouth—

His eyes widened as he inadvertently swallowed it and felt himself become disoriented almost at once. _A sleeping pill! But why—? And how did he—? … Haruno!_

His last thoughts were of strangling a certain pink-haired kunoichi before he completely succumbed to the medicine.

.

.

Tenten heaved a heavy sigh as she let her two giggly companions drag her to the third boutique. So far, all they've done was gush over this dress and that dress, but the two had yet to find a keeper.

She wondered idly whether or not to tell Ino and Sakura that their idea of a "girl's day out" was really not fun at all, when a loud, "SAKURA-CHAN!" gained their attentions.

Naruto and Lee were running to them at top speed, looking worn out but pleased with themselves.

"Sakura-san, mission accomplished!" Lee bellowed proudly, beating the disgruntled Naruto from making the announcement. He pouted and crossed his arms as they stopped directly in front of the girls.

Ino and Sakura exchanged panicked looks. Unfortunately, this did not go unnoticed by Tenten.

"Uh, that's great Lee," Sakura began nervously, shooting covert glances at the weapons mistress.

Naruto elbowed Lee for his tactlessness and huffed. "Well, yeah, you guys should just hurry before he wa—!"

Tenten cocked an eyebrow as Ino practically jumped on top of the other blonde while Sakura slapped his mouth shut, looking murderous.

"Shut up, you idiot!" Ino and Sakura exclaimed simultaneously, shooting angry glances at the boys.

Tenten frowned, her eyes narrowing into a suspicious glare. "What's going on here?"

Four pairs of eyes stared innocently back at her and after a strained silence, Tenten rounded on Lee. "Leee~!" she began threateningly, advancing towards the suddenly cowering boy.

"T_-_Tenten…! I… I…" Lee swallowed nervously. He and Tenten both knew that he couldn't keep a secret from her for very long. But _this__—_ he had promised Sakura-san not to tell! If he told Tenten, he'd have to run five hundred laps around Konoha and do eight hundred sit-ups and six hundred push-ups! He bowed lowly to his teammate, shocking her greatly with his response, "I'm sorry! I cannot tell you!"

Tenten watched in surprise as Lee sped away from her with his lightning speed. _Well, _that's_ never happened before… _

She turned back slowly to her remaining suspects and they jumped when her glare landed on each of them. She opened her mouth to speak, only to be halted by Sakura's dramatic gasp.

"Oh no!" the pink-haired girl exclaimed, suddenly looking very worried, "I think I dropped my house key back at the training grounds!"

Ino's hand flew theatrically to cover her mouth in an overdone imitation of shock. "Oh, we should go back for it right away! Who knows what kind of creep might pick it up!"

Tenten rolled her eyes, grumbling slightly as she watched Naruto make a run for it. "You two are up to something," she stated flatly, making Ino and Sakura shake their heads in furious denial.

"What? What do you mean?" Sakura asked innocently, already making her way back to where Tenten and Neji had been sparring.

"Yeah," seconded Ino, though she was no longer putting up an act, "We don't know what you're talking about!"

"Uh-huh. Sure," Tenten deadpanned. "And just how the hell do _you_ know you dropped the key back there? Why not the other shops? Or around here on the streets?"

Sakura shrugged lightly. She quit the innocent act and threw Tenten a smirk, "Oh… _you know_. I just have this feeling…"

Grumbling under her breath, Tenten had no choice but to follow her annoying pink-haired friend. She had a bad feeling about all this, and was just about to voice her suspicions to the blonde following close behind her, when_—_

"Shintenshin no Jutsu!"

It was the weirdest, most uncomfortable experience she'd ever gone through in her life. It felt as though she'd been pushed back_—_ mind, body, soul and all_—_ to the back corner of her own consciousness while Ino took over.

_Ino!_ Tenten though furiously, and she was unnerved to receive an inquiring _Hm?_ from the blonde who was now in control of her own body.

_What the hell do you think you're doing? Get out of my body right now!_

_Sorry, Tennie. No can do! Now, help me lift myself up__—_

Tenten was helpless as Ino used her arms to hoist the blonde's limp body off the ground. Sakura was grinning nearby, tongue sticking out in victory. She helped settle Ino's body into a more comfortable position on one of the street benches.

"Alright, let's go!" Sakura yelled cheerfully, and Tenten fought futilely as she responded with a cheery, "Yeah!"

Sakura giggled, "Wow, Tenten— I didn't think that you'd be so excited about this!"

"Oh, trust me— she ain't!" The Ino inside her giggled back, and Tenten swore that she was going to kill the blonde as soon as she was back in control of her own body. "Well, let's get going Billboard-brow! She's really fighting back! Besides, I don't want to leave my beautiful body alone for too long…"

Sakura snorted in mild amusement, "As if anyone would _want_ to touch it, Ino-pig!"

They squabbled all the way to Team Gai's training grounds, Ino arguing with both Sakura and Tenten. They were only a quarter of a mile away when Ino heaved a great, heavy sigh, rolling her currently-brown eyes.

_Come on!_ the weapons mistress pleaded for what seemed like the fiftieth time, her impatience growing, _Tell me what the hell is going on! Please! Shizune is going to come looking for me soon, you know__—_ she's coming with me to Suna!

"God, Tenten, give me a break here."

The pink-haired medic gave the brunette— who was really her blonde friend inside— a curious glance. "Is she still mad?"

"Mad? Try insane," scoffed Ino, tossing her head back out of habit_—_ except instead of the long blonde ponytail, her hair was a chocolate brown tied up tightly atop her head. Sakura giggled at the gesture.

"That bad, huh? She's gonna _kill_ us later."

"You know, I'm starting to think that maybe we should've left my body somewhere farther from here."

Shoving away some tangled branches, the duo broke away from the cluster of trees and stopped just inside the clearing where Team Gai trained.

_Well, Sakura? See your key?_ Tenten asked mockingly.

Ino rolled her eyes again. "Hey, Sakura, she's asking you sarcastically if you see your key."

Sakura huffed. "No. I don't. I think I've had it all along… But wait, what's that I see over there?" She stretched out an arm and pointed to one of the worn-out wooden posts to the left, her eyes widening rather dramatically.

Ino turned, her eyes settling on the post with a smirk on her face. Inside, she could hear Tenten gasp as their shared vision focused in on the unconscious figure. _Is that__—_? ...It is! What's with Neji? What the fuck is going on?

"Uh oh, not good," Ino snickered, practically skipping nearer to the post to get a better look at their tied-up hostage. "She's getting hysterical."

"Sorry, Tenten," said Sakura, forming a hand-seal, "This is for your own good… and Neji's too."

"That's right! Good ol' Sakura here got him drugged up."

Tenten could only fume and curse as Sakura created a shadow clone and Ino lowered herself to sit next to the limp Hyuuga.

"Okay, Sakura! Make it nice and tight!" Ino chirped.

_Wait, wait, wait! What the hell—?_

Sakura reached inside her pouch and drew out a rope, similar to the kind that bound the prodigy to the post.

_Oh, no! No, no, no, no, no! I don't think so! You guys are DEAD!_

Ino ignored the furious, screaming girl in her head and focused on helping the two Sakuras tie her up tightly next to Neji.

"How's that?" One of the Sakuras asked, surveying her work, "Can you move at all? Is it tight enough?"

Ino struggled briefly with her bindings and gave a pleased grin. "This is good, I think it'll hold for a while!"

Sakura smiled back mischievously. "Great! And now… It's time for the real me to leave! I'll be waiting for you, Ino!"

Ino and Tenten watched as the pink-haired girl made a run for it, leaving her clone behind. They were silent for a short moment, and Tenten knew that Ino was allowing time for Sakura to reach her body.

_Well? Now what? _Tenten demanded snidely. She was beyond pissed with the situation they'd put her in, but at least Neji was asleep. Y_ou've tied us up together. Great. Can I have my body back now?_

"Of course you may, Tenten!" Ino proclaimed sweetly. She turned to the waiting Sakura clone. "But first_—_ Sakura? You know what to do!"

They watched as the clone reached into her pouch and pulled out a small syringe. She knelt down to face Neji and brought the needle to the side of his neck.

_Wh… what is that…? D-Don't tell me it's what I think it is…!_

Ino giggled, readying her hands to release the mind-transfer jutsu. "Well_ of course_ it is! What use is all this if he's not awake?"

_INO, DON'T YOU DARE—!_

"Do it, Sakura!"

No sooner had the tip pierced his skin, Neji began to stir awake— the clone vanished with a 'poof!' and a cloud of smoke— and evil Ino, with a wide grin on her face, muttered, "Release!"

.

.

"…Uhn…"

A snort overhead made her open her eyes. "You okay there, sleeping beauty?"

Ino struggled to sit up, rubbing her eyes slightly. "Yeah… Wow. It sure is nice to be back inside my own body, with no one yelling at me in my head all the time."

Sakura laughed and offered a helping hand, which her friend took. She pulled Ino to her feet, then bit her lip worriedly. "I wonder if we were being too meddlesome… Do you think they'll be okay?"

"Oh, please!" the blonde exclaimed sternly, her hands on her hips. "I think the question is, will _we_ be okay? I mean, Tenten's after my head and Neji's bound to know where those two idiots got a sleeping pill _that _powerful— Sakura?"

The medic seemed to have turned into a statue before her very eyes. "S-Sakura? Hello? Anyone there—?"

"Oh. My. God," Sakura breathed slowly, her eyes wide with fear, "All this time, I thought that if he ever asked me about this I could blame_ you_! But you're right! Oh, God, the pill! I forgot_—_! Who else could've given it to Naruto? Oh, God!"

Ino began cracking up in hysterical laughter, her eyes streaming with mirthful tears. "So I've got Tenten, who is conveniently leaving later today, and you've got _Neji Hyuuga_!"

Sakura groaned miserably. "I think I should go ask Tsunade-sama for a short one-day mission, so I can leave Konoha and still be in time for Tenten's wedding in Suna."

"Hey! You mean_ if _there will be a wedding at all! I mean, that's what all this hard work was for, right? So that stubborn—"

"Ino. Even if he confesses now, it's kind of too late. That's what I've been trying to tell you ever since you came up with this insane plan! _You're _the stubborn one—"

The blonde waved away her friend's lecture, "Yeah, yeah! I've heard it already alright? Sheesh! Besides, shouldn't we be, oh I don't know, running as far away as possible right now?"

"Ugh. You're right," said Sakura, her shoulders falling in resignation, "My life is officially over. I'll be dead later, I swear."

Ino sniggered. "Aww, lighten up! When those two get together they have us to thank for!"

"_God! _You're so stubborn, Ino-Pig! I already said it was too late—!"

They squabbled all the way back to the village streets, blissfully unaware of troubles they've caused.

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_. End Chapter 11._

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Thanks again to my patient readers, reviewers, and lurkers. Sorry, I know I take forever.


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